IPL 2023: Match 11, Rajasthan Royals (RR) Predicted Playing XI vs Delhi Capitals

Rajasthan Royals (RR) will be looking to return to winning ways as they face struggling Delhi Capitals (DC) in the 11th match of the IPL 2023 at Guwahati's Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Saturday, April 8. After thrashing Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first game by 72 runs, the Royals suffered a narrow five-run defeat against Punjab Kings while chasing a 198-run target in the following game.

However, Sanju Samson-led team will enter this game as favorites with David Warner's Delhi Capitals losing their opening two games. Delhi will be looking at their recent encounters against the Royals with three wins from their last five clashes but enters this game without Mitchell Marsh.

Rajasthan will not be much troubled with their recent loss as they almost pulled an admirable chase. But still, they are likely to tinker with their bowling attack with KM Asif struggling to make an impact in the opening two games. Jos Buttler has suffered a minor left-hand finger injury while fielding against Punjab and might miss a week on the sidelines.

Here's Rajasthan Royals’ predicted XI against Delhi Capitals:

Openers: Devdutt Padikkal, Yashasvi Jaiswal

Devdutt Padikkal is likely to open against Delhi Capitals in Jos Buttler's absence. The young batter struggled for the big knocks while playing in the middle last season and it's been the same story in IPL 2023 so far. He scored 21 off 26 while chasing 198 runs against Punjab in the last game but might produce a big knock against Delhi if he plays in his natural position.

Yashasvi started explosively against Punjab by smashing an early six and four but was dismissed on just 11 runs while attempting another big shot over the mid-off. Yashasvi smashed a quick fifty against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first game and is looking in a good rhythm so far.

Middle Order: Sanju Samson (c & wk), Joe Root, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer

Sanju Samson has started the IPL 2023 campaign where he left off last season. He top-scored 55 off 32 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the opening game and then also put in an impressive knock of 42 off 25 against Punjab. Samson has good numbers against his former team, including a 46* off 19 knock in the first leg last season.  

Joe Root is expected to come in for injured Jos Buttler's place and might even open innings. But the management is likely to promote Padikkal to open and add Root to the middle to provide some stability. Root enters IPL 2023 after impressive performances in ILT20 with 214 runs from just five innings and might play a crucial knock on his debut for the Royals.

Riyan Parag smashed 20 off 12 while playing first time at his home ground in IPL. Parag completes the finishers criteria for Rajasthan but definitely needs to contribute more with a bat as the management has cleared its intentions for the youngster. Shimron Hetmyer almost clinched the big chase for Rajasthan Royals in the last game as he added a brave 62-run stand with Dhruv Jurel for the seventh wicket. He scored 36 off just 18 before getting run out in the last over, which also ended the Royals' hope against Punjab. 

All-rounders: Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder

Ravichandran Ashwin was the best bowler for the Royals in the last game taking a wicket for 25. He was promoted to open innings ahead of Jos Buttler which was a surprise move from the management but was dismissed on a duck while attempting a big shot to ease off the pressure. Ashwin recorded his first-ever fifty in the tournament's history during his last innings against Delhi Capitals in IPL 2022.

Jason Holder took two crucial wickets against Punjab Kings at an economy rate of 7.3 but didn't get much time to showcase his all-round skills. The franchise has used the Caribbean star as the fifth-choice bowling option so far but needs to utilize his batting skills as well.

Bowlers: Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Sen

The New Zealand speedster was sensational against Sunrisers Hyderabad with two early wickets but was totally out of rhythm against Punjab on a batting-friendly surface at Barsapara Cricket Stadium. He conceded runs at a 9.5 economy rate without any success and might struggle again at the same venue.

Yuzvendra Chahal won the Purple Cap in IPL 2022 with 27 wickets and has started this season with four wickets against Hyderabad and one against Punjab Kings in the last game. Chahal conceded 50 runs against Punjab as the pitch completely favored batters in the first IPL game this season.

Rajasthan kept the faith again in KM Asif as the second-choice pace option to partner Trent Boult against Punjab Kings. But the former Chennai Super Kings pacer emerged as the costliest bowler by conceding 54 runs and is likely to lose his place to Kuldeep Sen or Sandeep Sharma in the upcoming game. 

Rajasthan Royals (RR) Predicted XI

Devdutt Padikkal, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Joe Root, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Sen

Rajasthan Royals Probable Impact Players

Dhruv Jurel, KM Asif, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Akash Vasisht