Find out team news, TV and streaming information, odds, weather forecasts and much, much more ahead of the next game of the 2021 Indian Premier League season
Rajasthan Royals meet Chennai Super Kings in the 2021 Indian Premier League.
The game is scheduled for 6pm UAE (3pm BST, 7.30pm IST) on Saturday, October 2, 2021.
The two sides will meet at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi.
CSK have already secured passage to the knock-out phase, doing so thanks to a six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad, who were knocked out as a result.
Victory in one of their three remaining matches will assure them of a place in the Eliminator. Their final two games come against Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings.
Rajasthan Royals are part of what is expected to be a four-way battle for the final spot in the play-offs.
They currently sit in seventh, with four wins and seven defeats. Sanju Samson's side have lost each of their last three games and can ill-afford to see that streak continue.
Dafabet are backing Chennai Super Kings as favourites for this one, offering odds of 4/6.
The Royals are available at 6/5 as they look to keep their play-offs hopes alive.
In the battle of the opening partnerships, CSK's Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis are 19/20 to put on the highest stand for the first wicket.
Their opponents, likely to be led by Evin Lewis and Yashasvi Jaiswal, are evens to put on the highest opening partnership.
Sanju Samson may have questioned Rajasthan Royals' fighting qualities, but there is no doubting the quality of his performances since the restart.
He smashed an unbeaten 70 against Delhi Capitals before putting Sunrisers Hyderabad to the sword with an enterprising 82.
Samson, No.83 in the men's T20 Player Index, is currently the second-highest run-scorer in the competition, only behind Shikhar Dhawan and has urged his side to show character in the final three games of the campaign.
"To be honest, it's been a hard one week for us, we need to put in a fight as a franchise," he said after the loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore.
"Happy with the effort and intent with the bowling. We don't have anything to lose. That kind of mindset brings a lot of freedom, have seen some funny things happen. Need to keep on believing and fighting till the last match."
Among those charged with nullifying Samson will be Deepak Chahar, the new ball swing bowler who has claimed 11 wickets in as many games during the 11th edition of the IPL.
Omitted from India's T20 World Cup squad, Chahar is a key figure at the start of the innings in tandem with Josh Hazlewood and Shardul Thakur.
CSK could choose to rotate their XI ahead of the play-offs. The Royals may well look to reinstall David Miller, which could lead to the out-of-sorts Liam Livingstone missing out. Tabraiz Shamsi will also be pushed for a recall.
The two teams have played each other 24 times.
Rajasthan Royals wins: 9
Chennai Super Kings wins: 15
Another searingly hot say is in store for both teams, with temperatures expected to hit 34 degrees Celsius.
Follow the Met Office forecast here.
Yes, a limited number of fans are allowed to attend games during the IPL's UAE leg.
The Royals need the points in the race for the top four and with CSK having already qualified an upset could be on the cards.
IPL TEAM GUIDES
Sky Sports have the rights in the United Kingdom.
You can aso stream the tournament using the Disney+ Hotstar digital platform, though the matches are only available for VIP or Premium subscribers.
Star Sports have the television rights in India.
Streaming service YuppTV have acquired digital streaming rights in a host of markets, including Australia, continental Europe, Malaysia, Southeast Asia with the exception of Singapore, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives, Central Asia, and Central and South America.
In the USA, the games will be broadcast on Willow TV and the Willow TV website. Fox Sports have the broadcasting rights in Australia, while Supersport will televise the games in South Africa. In the Caribbean, Flow TV have the rights.
The following broadcasters owning the rights for their respective regions:
Bangladesh: Channel 9
Afghanistan: Lemar TV
Malaysia: Measat
MENA/UAE: BeIN Sport
Hong Kong: Now TV
Singapore: SingTel
New Zealand: Sky Sport
Papua New Guinea: EMTV
Rajasthan Royals squad: Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahim, Chetan Sakariya, K.C. Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh, Glenn Phillips, Tabraiz Shamsi, Oshane Thomas, Evin Lewis
Chennai Super Kings squad: Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Narayan Jagadeesabn, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KM Asif, Karn Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, Faf du Plessis, Shardul Thakur, Mitchell Santner, Dwayne Bravo, Lungi Ngidi, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, Imran Tahir, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, K Gowtham, Cheteshwar Pujara, M.Harisankar Reddy, K.Bhagath Varma, C Hari Nishaanth, R Sai Kishore, Josh Hazlewood
Rajasthan Royals: Evin Lewis, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Mahipal Lomror, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Riyan Parag, Chris Morris, Chetan Sakariya, Kartik Tyagi, Mustafizur Rahman
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis, Moeen Ali, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Josh Hazlewood
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