The 48th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 will be played between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on October 3. RCB has won 7 out of their 11 games so far, and they are currently standing 3rd on the points table. On the other hand, PBKS has managed to win just 5 games out of the 12 they have played so far, and as a result, they are placed 5th on the points table presently.
In their last game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Dubai, PBKS managed to pull off a win in the very last over. Batting first, KKR stacked 165 runs for the loss of 7 wickets and PBKS managed to chase is down the score in the 20th over, courtesy to Rahul’s 67. On the other hand, RCB registered a comfortable 7-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals (RR) at Dubai. Batting first, RR only managed to reach a total of 149 runs, however, RCB chased down this total in the 18th over itself, their star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell played an unbeaten knock of 50 runs.
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These two teams have met 27 times so far in IPL history, where Punjab Kings won 15 clashes while RCB has won 12 games. The last times these two teams met, in Ahmedabad, Punjab Kings won the game by 34 runs. A win for Bangalore would almost guarantee them a playoff spot whereas a win for Punjab would send them into the top 4.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
Goerge Garton seemed a smart match-up pick against the RR given his record against left-handers. But RCB could welcome back Wanindu Hasaranga on the slow Sharjah wicket against a line-up that has mostly one left-hander in Nicholas Pooran.
Probable XI: Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, KS Bharat (wk), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dan Christian, Wanindu Hasaranga/George Garton, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal
Punjab Kings (PBKS)
Fabian Allen came out to bat limping against KKR and he will be looking to regain fitness. Last season, at the same venue, they fielded two leggies Ravi Bishnoi and Murugan Ashwin in tandem, disrupting RCB into sending left-handers Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar ahead of de Villiers in the order. Left-arm spinner Brar had a great game in Ahmedabad and is set for a comeback and should Anil Kumble and KL Rahul really need it, they do have the option of playing Adil Rashid instead of Fabian Allen.
Probable XI: KL Rahul (c&wk), Mayank Agarwal, Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Fabian Allen/Adil Rashid, Chris Jordan/Nathan Ellis, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh
Fantasy XI Suggestion 1:
KL Rahul, KS Bharat, Devdutt Padikkal, Aiden Markram, Virat Kohli (VC), Glenn Maxwell (C), Fabian Allen, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshal Patel, George Garton
Fantasy XI Suggestion 2:
KL Rahul (C), Nicholas Pooran, Devdutt Padikkal (VC), Mayank Agarwal, AB de Villiers, Glenn Maxwell, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Nathan Ellis, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj
