Jofra Archer Out, Kwena Maphaka In? RR's Probable Playing XI vs PBKS

Soumyajit Dutta

Jofra Archer and Kwena Maphaka [Source: @_Werries/X]Jofra Archer and Kwena Maphaka [Source: @_Werries/X]

Rajasthan Royals are all set for another challenge at Punjab today as they face Shreyas Iyer & Co. who are riding high on confidence after their 2 out of 2 win in the game. While RR languishes at the bottom of the table, Punjab tops the chart.

Apparently, Rajasthan Royals batters have been doing well so far as also seen in the latest match against Chennai at Assam. However, a little tweak in the bowling lineup can improve the chances of the Royals winning against Punjab in the upcoming encounter. 

RR's Playing XI In Last Match vs CSK

Here's a look at RR's playing XI for the last encounter against CSK with which they won the game at Assam.

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma, Sanju Samson
Impact Player - Kumar Kartikeya

Expected Changes In RR's Playing XI

Maphaka In Place Of Archer?

Jofra Archer's numbers haven't been at their very best which would justify his hefty price at the IPL mega auction. 1-13, 0-33 and 0-76 are his expensive numbers against the three teams he played in IPL! While it is understood that the Royals will back him for long for a turnaround because of his raw pace strength, Kwena Maphaka can be a good option as a like-for-like replacement. 

While Maphaka's numbers are not great, he can be brought in to give Archer some time to regroup and come back stronger in the next match. Maphaka boasts an economy rate of 10.25 in T20s and has picked up 10 wickets in his 16 innings. While his IPL experience is limited, he is expected to do well on flat surfaces.

Tushar Deshpande Out?

Tushar Deshpande has also been expensive in his last few matches with his lone bright spot in the first match against Hyderabad where he scalped 3 wickets. As per stats, his numbers against Punjab is not great as he struggles at an economy rate of 12.50 against the team. 

However, his wicket taking ability against the Shreyas Iyer-led team is effective as he has scalped 5 wickets in his 3 matches. Hence, Deshpande is likely to stay in the XI but can be swapped for an impact player (likely Vaibhav Suryavanshi) during chase.

RR's Probable XI vs PBKS

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kwena Maphaka, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
Impact Player - Kumar Kartikeya, Vaibhav Suryavanshi