Key match-ups, analysis, form, team news, weather forecast, tickets, TV and streaming information, odds, predictions and more ahead of the latest encounter in the 2023 IPL
Rajasthan Royals take on Chennai Super Kings in the 2023 Indian Premier League.
The match is scheduled to start at 7.30pm local time (3pm BST) on Thursday, April 27.
The match will be played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur.
CSK remains the team to beat and are currently on a three-game win streak which has taken them to the top of the table. They dominated Kolkata Knight Riders in their last outing, prevailing by 49 runs having over Sunrisers Hyderabad by seven wickets.
Royals on the other hand have lost their last two games after a bright start to the season. A 10-run loss to Lucknow Super Giants was followed by a seven-run loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore, but those close defeat were anything but disastrous. While remain third in the points table, they will want to turn the results around soon before they fall further down the table.
CSK have won five out of their first seven games (DIBYANGSHU SARKAR/AFP via Getty Images)
CSK continue to be hit by injury issues with their bowlers. Deepak Chahar is expected to remain out with a hamstring injury while Sisanda Magala is nearing a return, but this fixture may come too soon.
Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the game following the injury setback announced earlier in the week.
Rajasthan Royals, meanwhile, have no fresh injury news.
CSK's biggest strength so far this season has been their opening partnership. Devon Conway has been the most consistent batter for them, hitting 314 runs which is the second most in the tournament so far. He is closely followed by his opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad who has 270.
The Super Kings will be looking to them again to give them a winning base to build on. Royals will need to disrupt them as early as possible, and they have the firepower to do so.
Yuzvendra Chahal is close to becoming the highest-ever IPL wicket-taker and he has started this season in imperious form with 13 wickets. Backed up by Trent Boult and Ravichandran Ashwin, the pressure will be on them to stop their losing streak.
Jos Buttler has been consistent for the Royals but has not yet reached the heights of last year's form. But with CSK's bowling ranks struggling with injury this could be the ideal opportunity for him to go big.
Tushar Deshpande and Ravindra Jadeja will be standing in his way. They have done the heavy lifting for the Super Kings bowling attack so far with 12 and 10 wickets respectively.
Matches played: 28
Rajasthan Royals wins: 13
Chennai Super Kings wins: 15
The current forecast has the game starting in cloudy conditions with a chance of rain.
Jos Buttler (MONEY SHARMA/AFP via Getty Images)
Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shimron Hetmyer, Devdutt Padikkal, Jos Buttler (wk), Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Obed McCoy, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Sen, Kuldeep Yadav, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, KC Cariappa, Jason Holder, Donovan Ferreira (wk), Kunal Rathore, Adam Zampa, KM Asif, Murugan Ashwin, Akash Vashisht, Abdul PA, Joe Root
Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (c), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Subhranshu Senapati, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Dwaine Pretorius, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Chowdhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh, Deepak Chahar, Prashant Solanki, Maheesh Theekshana, Ajinkya Rahane, Ben Stokes, Shaik Rasheed, Nishant Sidhu, Kyle Jamieson (injured, replaced by Sisanda Magala), Ajay Mandal, Bhagath Verma
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c, wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Abdul Basith, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Ajinkya Rahane, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (c), Moeen Ali, Matheesha Pathirana, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Ambati Rayudu
A tight match is expected with both teams available at 10/11.
CSK's recent form suggests that they should take the win. However, the Royals' two recent losses have been tight contests and back at their home stadium they could edge this one and get back to winning ways.
In the UK, Sky Sports have exclusive rights to this year's tournament, with matches available on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket.
Fans in India can watch all the action on Star Sports.
Elsewhere in the world, viewers in Australia can watch the IPL on Fox Sports while in New Zealand, Sky Sport will provide coverage.
Willow TV and Flow Sports will broadcast the tournament in the United States and the Caribbean, respectively.
Fans in MENA can catch the action on beIN Sports while in South Africa, SuperSport have the rights.
If you are watching from the Middle East, you'll be able to view the game on Times Internet.
People from Bangladesh can watch the game on Gazi TV.
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