RCB searching for answers against in-form Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals (RR) vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)

Jaipur, 7.30pm IST (2pm GMT)

New season, newish team name, same old problems. Four games into IPL 2024, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have just one win. The top quarter of their line-up is full of superstars, but most of them are yet to fire, which has put immense pressure on the not-quite-superstars who make up the rest of their batting. The bowling has been, well, RCB.

Rajasthan Royals have a pair of not-quite-firing superstars too, right at the top of their line-up, but that hasn't impacted their results so far, with their opening three games bringing them three wins. How good could the Royals be, then, if Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Buttler begin scoring runs?

Equally, though, it may take just one of Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green to find form for RCB's campaign to spark to life. It's still early days in IPL 2024, and you only have to go back to last season to know that a good start is only a start. Royals began with four wins in their first five games, and RCB with two wins in five, but by the end of the league stage both teams had the same points and similar net run rates.

There's a long way to go, then, but RCB will know that a turnaround, if there is to be one, will need to begin soon.

Royals WWW (most recent match first)

RCB LLWL

Sandeep Sharma missed Royals' last match, away in Mumbai, with a niggle. If he's fit again, expect him to slot back, with Nandre Burger slipping back into the Impact Player rotation alongside the likes of Rovman Powell and Shubham Dube. Royals like to use their substitute depending on match situation rather than in a wholly toss-dependent way, and ideally like to have six full-time bowling options whenever possible.

Likely XII 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Jos Buttler, 3 Sanju Samson (capt & wk), 4 Riyan Parag, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Dhruv Jurel, 7 R Ashwin, 8 Trent Boult, 9 Avesh Khan, 10 Sandeep Sharma, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal, 12 Nandre Burger/Rovman Powell

Since making an impressive 25-ball 48 in the season opener in Chennai, Anuj Rawat has scored 25 off 48 balls across his next three innings. There is a chance RCB might leave him out on Saturday and hand the keeping gloves back to Dinesh Karthik. It could allow them to start Mahipal Lomror instead of using him as an Impact Player, and give the middle-order batter Suyash Prabhudessai or the allrounder Manoj Bhandage a look-in. There could be a temptation to try and bring Will Jacks into the mix too, but RCB may find it hard to fit him in unless they leave out their big-money trade signing Cameron Green.

Likely XII 1 Virat Kohli, 2 Faf du Plessis (capt), 3 Rajat Patidar, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Cameron Green, 6 Anuj Rawat/Suyash Prabhudessai/Manoj Bhandage, 7 Mahipal Lomror, 8 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 9 Mayank Dagar, 10 Reece Topley, 11 Mohammed Siraj, 12 Yash Dayal.

He has one of the most specialised batting roles in the IPL, to the extent that R Ashwin routinely bats ahead of him if Royals feel the ideal entry point for their death-overs hitter hasn't yet arrived. Consequently, IPL 2024 has seen very little of Shimron Hetmyer so far. He's batted only twice in their first three games, and one of his innings was an unbeaten 14 off seven balls. And when Royals bring in a bowler as Impact sub, it's usually Hetmyer who makes way. If he makes an appearance in his designated role on Saturday, he'll be up against an RCB attack that has an economy rate of 11.30 in the death overs this season, while picking up just four wickets in that phase in four games.

For RCB, Dinesh Karthik plays a similar role to Hetmyer, his entry point is often delayed so he can bat at the death. Royals are aware of this, and also of Karthik's preference for batting against pace. Karthik is particularly averse to batting against legspin, and doesn't have a great record against Yuzvendra Chahal. In all their IPL meetings, Chahal has bowled 51 balls to Karthik and conceded only 47 runs while dismissing him three times. Chahal is happy to bowl at the death, and Royals are happy to keep two of his overs for that phase whenever they're up against RCB and Karthik. Chahal bowled the 17th and 19th overs in both meetings between these sides last season, picking up 2 for 11 in that mini-spell in Bengaluru, where he got to bowl to Karthik, and 0 for 22 in Jaipur, where he didn't.

Royals have won both their home games so far, batting first both times and defending totals of 193 and 185. The chasing team was in with a good chance in both games, so the Sawai Mansingh Stadium isn't necessarily a bat-first ground, though the large outfield and relative lack of dew do tend to even things up for the team bowling second.