The Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati will host its second and final IPL 2023 match tomorrow, between the home team Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals, both of which suffered defeats during their previous respective matches.
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Rajasthan nearly chased down the challenging target of 198 during their previous match at this venue versus Punjab Kings, courtesy of some inspired contributions from the lower middle-order batters in Shimron Hetmyer (36 off 18) and Dhruv Jurel (32* off 15), but agonizingly fell short by 5 runs.
Having said that, RR are perhaps in a much better head space than the Capitals, who have begun their season with two consecutive losses.
It is their batting line-up during both these matches which have come up with uninspiring performances. While the duo of skipper David Warner and Prithvi Shaw have looked lackluster, Sarfaraz Khan’s struggle with his scoring rate during the middle-Overs has also hurt them.
However, Warner and the team management will certainly not be perturbed so early in the tournament, as they possess one of the strongest batting line-up in the tournament.
Guwahati Cricket Stadium Pitch Report for RR vs DC
The DC batters perhaps require a pitch like the one in Guwahati, to get off the blocks and play their shots through the line with aplomb.
The pitch at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium last Wednesday, saw both the teams collectively pile on 389 runs across 40 Overs, as it turned out to be a batting paradise with the added advantage of relatively shorter boundaries.
“To be honest, it was a very good track to bat on, not much movement with the new ball and they batted really well, had the momentum in the powerplay,” remarked RR skipper Sanju Samson on the Guwahati track during the post-match presentation.
However, an afternoon game tomorrow might well bring the spinners into the picture as the pitch might offer them some grip and turn.
All in all, expect another cracker of a high-scoring contest tomorrow evening, with batters likely to have a day out.
Notable absentees for RR and DC tomorrow
Jos Buttler‘s participation in tomorrow’s match is not a given, as he had hurt his little finger during the previous match versus Punjab. In case he does miss the game, he could be replaced either by Joe Root or the explosive Peoteas uncapped batter Donovan Ferreira.
As for the Capitals, their Aussie allrounder Mitchell Marsh is out of the tournament at least for a week, as he is set to get married in Australia. Rowman Powell might well replace him in the XI.
