The Kings XI Punjab have a great chance to close in on a place in the Indian Premier League play-offs on Friday afternoon when they take on the Rajasthan Royals in what is another huge match in the competition in Abu Dhabi.
The Kings XI go into the game occupying the final postseason spot and can consolidate their position with a win while the Rajasthan Royals know their campaign is done and dusted unless they come out of this match with the victory so we should be in for a crackerjack of a game.
Kings XI Punjab
The turnaround in the Kings XI Punjab this season has been remarkable. They were 1-6 for the campaign at the halfway mark and five games and five wins later they not only have a level ledger but they have the second best run rate of the five teams outside of the top three. They look to be getting better by the game and even the potential disruption of the injury to Mayank Agarwal hasn’t done any damage to their form.
Earlier in the season the Kings XI were struggling for runs outside of the opening pair and they couldn’t bowl a decent death over for love nor money. Now they have all of their batting line up contributing heavily and their bowling attack has really stepped up to be counted. More of the same is not only likely to win them this match but it could yet fire them into the top two which would give them two goes at making the final.
Rajasthan Royals
The Rajasthan Royals looks to be coming there ready to make their move down the home straight but then came a wobble however they have won two of their last three now and are seemingly refusing to go away. The issue they have at the minute is their bowling attack is plundering runs at a rate that is not healthy and something surely has to change in that regard, where it is with personnel or the order the bowlers are used.
Teams are now sitting on Jofra Archer because they know the all you can eat buffet is ready and waiting once he disappears from the attack. The positive is that the issues they were having with their batting order look to have disappeared with the fantastic century that Ben Stokes produced in the last match. If the confidence of that allows them to bat with freedom then there is no shortage of power and class in their line up to put up some big scores.
Special Offer
Sign up for an account on the Betfair Exchange and get a free £20 risk free bet to use on the IPL! Click the image below to bet. 18+ T&Cs apply. New accounts only. Gamble Aware.
New customers only, bet up to £20 on the Exchange and if your first bet loses, we’ll refund you £20 in Cash. Bet must be placed in first 7 days of account opening. Click the above image to bet. T&Cs apply. Payment restrictions apply.
Key Men
There doesn’t need to be a buffet on offer for Chris Gayle to tuck right into a bowling attack but the fact that is exactly what is on show here will light the eyes up of the ‘Universe Boss’ and it isn’t hard to see the Caribbean star doing some big damage here.
Ben Stokes came to the party in a big way in the wonderful win over the Mumbai Indians last time out and the Rajasthan Royals will need plenty more from arguably the best cricketer on the planet right now if they are to keep their season alive.
Betting
I’m happy to jump on the boundaries in this match. The Kings XI are probably the leaders when it comes to hitting boundaries at the minute with their top five fearful hitters of a cricket ball and if they can negotiate the Jofra Archer opening spell there are going to be plenty of balls for them to hit. Although the Kings XI have improved plenty with the ball, you wouldn’t say they are watertight by any means either and the Royals bat very deep.
We’ve also seen the boundaries become more accessible for the batsmen here in Abu Dhabi and I certainly don’t see that changing with these two sides on show. We’re at the stage where Rajasthan won’t just want to limp to victory. If they are in control of a run chase it is in their interests to plough their way over the line as quickly as possible to address their run rate which is going to come into play if they win this match. That should add an edge to the boundary hitting so I’m more than happy with over 37.5 boundaries here.
Tips
WON – Back Over 37.5 boundaries for a 3/10 stake at 1.91 with William Hill
Back it here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2020
