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Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) lock horns with former champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) as Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to bowl first in their Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore on Sunday (April 23).
One again Virat Kohli will lead the RCB's pack as Faf Du Plessis won't field and will only come to bat.
“It was pretty easy to choose, we'd have batted first. This wicket looks dry and it will get drier and might break up first. I didn't say that to Sanju, but I'm very happy to bat first. We both get to do what we wanted. They informed me last time saying I might have to captain a couple of games, nothing I'm not used to doing. So I'm happy to step in, ready to continue from whatever Faf has been doing. The team has responded well, we are playing with a lot of energy and that showed in the last game. One change for us, Wayne Parnell is out and he will be replaced by David Willey. Faf continues to play as an impact sub,” RCB skipper Kohli said after the toss.
“We'll bowl first. Looking at the conditions, our side and their side. So we'd prefer bowling. The dressing room is simple, honest and we need to respect the way we are playing. We are starting with the same XI, might add someone later on,” RR captain Samson said after winning the toss.
Follow the RCB vs RR's live scores here
Head-to-Head
RCB and RR have played each other 25 times, where Men in Purple have won 12 games and Bangalore have emerged victorious in 13 matches respectively.
Pitch Report
“It is a day game again, so will be hard work. We are center today, so 62m and 63m side boundaries. The straight boundary is 67m, so not a big hit anywhere on this park. The surface looks dry and being a day game, the average first innings score in 158. While tells us it is a slower surface, and will take turn. The powerplay is so much more important on drier surfaces. You need to take a few chances. As a bowler, the best strategy is vary your lengths and use the slower balls. Doesn't matter if you bat first or bat second,” Pommie Mbangwa and Aaron Finch analysed the pitch.
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson(w/c), Devdutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal
RR subs: Donavon Ferreira, M Ashwin, Akash Vasisht, KM Asif and Abdul Basith.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (Playing XI): Virat Kohli(c), Faf du Plessis, Mahipal Lomror, Glenn Maxwell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik(w), Suyash Prabhudessai, David Willey, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mohammed Siraj, Vijaykumar Vyshak
RCB subs: Harshal Patel, Finn Allen, Akash Deep, Karn Sharma and Anuj Rawat.
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