Rajasthan Royals’ evening in Jaipur began with a small twist. Stand-in skipper Yashasvi Jaiswal won the toss, thought briefly, then chose to chase. The logic was simple enough: dew is forecast to roll in, so the ball should skid on later.
Key facts first. Regular captain Riyan Parag’s hamstring has not healed in time. He is listed among the Impact substitutes but will only bat if absolutely necessary. “It means a lot to me and proud to represent the Rajasthan Royals franchise,” Jaiswal said, sounding equal parts excited and slightly nervous.
Three fresh faces come in for the Royals: Sandeep Sharma, left-arm quick Sushant Mishra (making his IPL debut) and South African batter-keeper Lhuan-dre Pretorius. Ravi Singh and Adam Milne sit this one out, while Parag watches intently from the dug-out. Since the opening week of last season, the Royals have managed just one win in eight outings at this ground; not disastrous, yet certainly not the fortress they once imagined.
Lucknow Super Giants land in town with nothing tangible to play for: their play-off hopes evaporated three nights ago. Even so, a couple of fresh combinations appear. Left-armer Mohsin Khan replaces the rested Mohammed Shami, and Ayush Badoni steps in for Aiden Markram, who has flown home on personal leave and will skip the final match too. For now, LSG are operating with only three overseas players. Mystery spinner Digvesh Rathi is parked on the Impact list and almost certain to bowl later.
Ravindra Jadeja, nursing elbow and knee niggles, misses out once again. His absence from India’s upcoming one-off Test versus Afghanistan was confirmed earlier, so franchise and country share the same concern.
Probable Impact manoeuvres? Vaibhav Sooryavanshi likely appears for RR if the chase stretches. LSG might introduce Rathi the moment the ball starts gripping.
Teams
RR (field first): Jaiswal (capt), Pretorius, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Donovan Ferreira, Shubham Dubey, Dasun Shanaka, Jofra Archer, Mishra, Sandeep Sharma, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja. Impact options: Sooryavanshi, Yudhvir Singh, Aman Rao, Ravi Bishnoi, Parag.
LSG (bat first): Mitchell Marsh, Josh Inglis, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), Badoni, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohsin Khan, Mayank Yadav, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav. Impact options: Mukul Choudhary, M Siddharth, Rathi, Himmat Singh, Arshin Kulkarni.
All told, a low-key but meaningful contest. RR need the points to stay in the five-team play-off jam; LSG play for pride and a cleaner table finish. Dew may settle who smiles last.
