The season was a productive one not only for the Royals but from Indian cricket’s point of view as a number of young players like Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel stepped up through the season.
Unlike the placid batting turfs of Kotla, Wankhede or the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad, a sterner challenge awaits the batters in Chepauk where the strip will be sticky in nature. And thus, the MA Chidambaram Stadium could be expected to provide the perfect balance between the bat and ball.
On the other hand, RCB have sensationally bounced back from the brink of elimination. After losing seven of their first eight games this season, the Faf du Plessis-led outfit came back strongly by winning their last six games on the trot and sealed a playoffs berth.
The two-month long Indian Premier League 2024 season is finally approaching its culmination, after the conclusion of the league phase on Sunday, with the top four teams gearing up for the final hurrah.
However, in the scenario of Hardik being purchased by some other franchise in next year’s IPL mega auction, he will miss that particular team’s first game.
Smarting from four consecutive losses, Rajasthan Royals will look to arrest the slide and cement their top-two finish when they host table-toppers Kolkata Kight Riders (KKR) in this season’s final league match on Sunday evening.
Sunrisers’ ultra aggressive approach saw them qualify for the playoffs with 15 points from 13 games, giving them a privilege which can give them two shots at making the final.
Thursday’s washout in Hyderabad meant that Sunrisers Hyderabad joined Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals as the three confirmed teams for the playoffs and the race is now for only one spot with two teams in fray -- CSK and RCB.
While Mumbai Indians were knocked out of the playoffs race long back, Lucknow Super Giants’ chances of making the last-four are hung by a thread even if they win their last league stage game here by a huge margin.
Rabada was part of the Punjab Kings franchise in the Indian Premier League, and featured in 11 matches bagging 11 wickets at an economy of 8.85.
