IPL 2025, RR aim to open account versus CSK: Preview
What's the story
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 promises an exciting showdown as the Rajasthan Royals (RR) take on the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
The match, part of a highly competitive league, will be held at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati on March 30.
While RR have lost both their first two fixtures, CSK are also coming off a defeat.
Here we look at the match preview.
Pitch report
Pitch conditions at Barsapara Stadium
The Barsapara Stadium is famous for its peculiar pitch conditions which are unlike any other ground in the league.
The surface here tends to assist spinners throughout the 40 overs of play, while shrewd pacers can also get lucky.
However, batters aren't at a loss with shorter square boundaries helping them score runs quickly.
Star Sports will telecast the match, fans can also live-stream it on the JioHotstar app or website (7:30pm IST).
Rivalry stats
Head-to-head: RR vs CSK
The two teams have locked horns 29 times in the IPL, with the Super Kings winning 16.
RR, the inaugural IPL champions, have won 13 matches in this regard.
They beat CSK in the final of the first IPL season (2008).
Notably, the two sides clashed only once in IPL 2024 and CSK clinched that fixture in Chennai.
Team performance
RR's rocky start to IPL 2025
The Rajasthan Royals have had a difficult start in IPL 2025.
They suffered a crushing defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their opening match, conceding 286 runs in the first innings.
In their next game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), RR's batting order collapsed, scoring just 131 runs.
These two defeats have placed them at the bottom of the table, hoping for a change in fortunes.
CSK's performance
CSK's strong start before defeat
In stark contrast, the Chennai Super Kings have had a brilliant start to IPL 2025. They opened their campaign with a convincing win over their arch-rivals Mumbai Indians (MI).
The debutants sparkled in the match, playing a key role in CSK's win.
Their second match was against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), where they suffered a rare home defeat against the opposition.
XIs
Here are the predicted playing XIs
RR (Predicted playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag (c), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
CSK (Predicted playing XI): Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Deepak Hooda, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana, Khaleel Ahmed.
Impact subs: Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson.
Poll
