IPL 2019: Predicting Rajasthan Royals' starting eleven vs Kings XI Punjab

With the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League underway, Rajasthan Royals play their opening game against Kings XI Punjab in the pink city of Jaipur which is the home ground of the Royals.

The Royals had a decent season in 2018 as they ended up losing to Kolkata Knight Riders in the playoffs, that too without their skipper Steve Smith. They will look to take the positives from the previous season and make it to the finals in this edition of the league. They have a good bunch of players with them. They have excellent in form batsmen in the form of Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson, all-rounders in Krishnappa Gowtham and Ben Stokes and bowlers in Jaydev Unadkat and Oshane Thomas. They also have tons of experience in Ajinkya Rahane and Steve Smith.

Let's have a look at what the Royals could field in their opening game against the Kings.

Openers - Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi

Rahane and Rahul have had many good opening partnerships.

Rahane had a good season with the Royals in 2018. He scored an impressive 370 runs and was the third highest scorer for Royals. He will look to continue playing his role as an anchor as that will also help him book his seat to England in June. His captaincy was also superb in the year which is why he got his team to the playoffs despite having a rather inexperienced squad.

The second opener for the team will be Rahul Tripathi. He was the next highest scorer after Rahane and had a healthy strike rate of 135+ which helped Rahane set himself at the top. These two batsmen complement each other well at the top and they make a dangerous opening pair. If one of them settles down, he can change the whole course of the game single-handedly.

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Middle Order - Steve Smith, Jos Butler, Sanju Samson

Buttler will be crucial for RR this season.

The middle order of the Royals is one of the most well-settled ones. They have extremely in form batsmen who can single-handedly take down the opposition.

Steve Smith, the former skipper of Rajasthan will be coming after the openers. Though he has just recovered from an injury, he will be looking to make the most of the IPL to make it back to the Australian team just like his deputy David Warner. He had an amazing IPL in 2017 where he was the highest scorer for his team and the fourth highest scorer overall. He is very well equipped technically and can play orthodox and as well as unorthodox shots all around the field. He will be vital for the Royals if they want to make it to the playoffs again this year.

After Smith, the most in-form batsmen of the year, Jos Buttler will come in. He has had a stellar year in cricket in all formats of the game and his recent 77-ball 150 showed his hitting abilities. He had a near perfect IPL in 2018 and came out all guns blazing as he scored a mammoth 548 runs at an average of 54.80 runs and a stunning strike rate of 155+. He would be really happy with himself if he can replicate in last year's performance.

After Buttler, Sanju Samson will take the responsibility of carrying his team to a big score. He has the ability to play the big shots and his recent scores have proven the same. He too had a brilliant outing in the 11th edition of the IPL scoring 441 runs at an excellent strike rate of 130+. He can also provide the batting order from collapsing if the top order fails.

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All Rounders - Ben Stokes and Krishnappa Gowtham

The explosive all-rounder would want to justify his price tag this year.

The most expensive player in the previous edition will look to prove his worth as the best all-rounder in cricket. Known for his explosive batting and his wicket-taking abilities, Ben Stokes is someone who can turn the game from the word go. He provides four overs of quality bowling at the death as well as in the powerplay and his hitting skills are second to none. He will be looking to finish off things for Royals once their top order gets out and will want to pick up the crucial wickets.

More of a bowling all-rounder, Krishnappa Gowtham is also an effective pinch-hitter. His variations in spin and googlies are very well known. He has the ability to make the ball reach the fence with his bat and his strike rate of 197 in the previous season is proof of that. He also picked up 11 wickets and was the joint second highest wicket-taker for the Royals. His performance will have a huge impact on how the Royals shape this year and it is extremely crucial that he performs well.

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Bowlers - Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Varun Aaron and Oshane Thomas

Jaydev Unadkat's success will help RR reach the playoffs very conveniently.

The Royals have a good mixture of spin and pace in their bowling attack. Their bowling attack was led by Jaydev Unadkat who has had a stunning year in cricket. He picked up 11 wickets last year and bowled at the death too. He would want to better his performance to justify his price tag at the IPL auctions and repay the faith the Royals have shown in him.

Shreyas Gopal was the second highest wicket-taker for RR last year picking up 11 wickets at an incredible average of 21.45. His spin variations and accuracy helps him get rid of the batsmen very easily as they aren't able to pick his variations. He can play the big shots at crucial times and his performance helped the Royals reached the playoffs last year and the team would expect the same from him this year.

Oshane Thomas has been a name taken very often this year. He is known to have bowled at terrific speeds, upwards of 145 kph and with his height, he is sometimes impossible to play, which is what makes him such an invaluable player. He will be looking to contributing greatly towards the team and make his first year a memorable one.

Lastly, Varun Aaron will be the last bowler in this attack. With his off-cutter and yorkers, he has been a good bowler in the death and Rajasthan will look to make full use of his skills. He has a little bit of experience too which will help the team in pressure situations.

Thus, that makes the complete eleven of the Royals. With such a balanced team, it will be quite a task for Kings XI Punjab to beat them in their home ground and it will be interesting to see who takes their opening game for a win.

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