IPL 2020: Match 23, RR vs DC – Rishabh Pant’s Royal battle and Jos Buttler’s inning construction

Rajasthan Royals, still searching for their first win outside Sharjah, returns to their fortress and is hopeful of adding two points to their tally. They will be up against Delhi Capitals who are eying the top spot in the points table with their 5th win of the season. The Delhi franchise played at the Sharjah Stadium last week and registered the season’s highest total. The likes of Rishabh Pant, Jos Buttler, Marcus Stoinis and Sanju Samson could have a good hit in Sharjah and contribute towards yet another high-scoring game.

Can the Royals stop Rishabh in RR vs DC?

Rajasthan Royals could be in for some tough time if Rishabh Pant walks in at his usual position of No.4 or even before. Only Shreyas Gopal and Jofra Archer have managed to provide breakthroughs regularly for RR in the recent matches. However, against both the bowlers, Pant has an impressive batting record and is yet to be dismissed by them. The duo bowled 36 balls collectively and got hit for 61 runs including six sixes. This record is the reason why Pant is on a 3-match streak of scoring match-winning fifties against RR.

Can Gopal provide breakthrough early on?

The idea of bowling Yuzvendra Chahal early on didn’t work well for RCB against the Delhi Capitals as the leg-spinner ended up conceding 18 runs in an over. However, Rajasthan Royals have not got enough quality bowling options like RCB and could be forced to get through two overs of Shreyas Gopal in the powerplay during RR vs DC. The leg-spinner has dismissed Prithvi Shaw in his both meetings and Shikhar Dhawan once. The duo has struggled against googlies which the Karnataka spinner could exploit on.

Will Buttler script a master-class in RR vs DC?

Capitalizing field restrictions was one of the reasons behind Jos Buttler’s success as an opener in the IPL. In the first six overs as RR opener, Buttler amassed runs at an average of 77.3 and a strike rate of 162.2. While he tends to slow down a bit after the powerplay, his scoring rate raises incredibly well between 11th and 15th over. During the same phase, Buttler scored 27 runs from only 12 runs against MI.

At Sharjah, we could see Buttler on the top of his game through the inning. However, Delhi has got Kagiso Rabada in their line-up who has troubled Buttler in every format they met. Rabada usually bowls an over during the powerplay and little after halfway stage. Going by the batting form of RR batter, they could lose upon at least 30-40 runs if Rabada succeeds in getting Buttler in the powerplay.

(Stats as on October 8, 2020)