Mullanpur, April 4 (NationPress) The current leaders, Punjab Kings, will strive to sustain their winning streak as they welcome the struggling Rajasthan Royals for match 18 of IPL 2025 on Saturday evening.

Having secured two victories thus far, PBKS aims to further solidify their top position, while RR, with only one win in three matches, is eager to turn their fortunes around.

PBKS is filled with confidence after starting their season with two consecutive victories under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer, who has scored 149 runs in two matches at a remarkable strike rate of over 200, including 13 sixes—just behind Nicholas Pooran of Lucknow Super Giants, who leads with 15 sixes.

In addition to Iyer, PBKS boasts a strong batting lineup featuring Shashank Singh, Prabhsimran Singh, and the promising Priyansh Arya, adding depth and strength to their batting order.

The bowling unit, spearheaded by Aeshdeep Singh, includes Vijaykumar Vyshak, who has made a significant impression in PBKS' season opener against Gujarat Titans, showcasing his skills as an impactful substitute.

Meanwhile, the struggling RR will be uplifted by the return of Sanju Samson, who is back as captain and wicketkeeper after recovering from surgery on his right index finger, following an injury sustained during the T20I series against England in February.

Samson has so far participated in the tournament as a batter, while Riyan Parag has taken the reins as captain. Unfortunately, Parag's leadership did not yield significant results, despite a narrow victory against Chennai Super Kings.

Even though he has not been behind the stumps, Samson has still made contributions, scoring an impressive 66 runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the opening match and 13 and 20 runs against Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings, respectively.

Both Samson and Dhruv Jurel will be crucial in setting or chasing substantial scores, with Shimron Hetmyer expected to provide the necessary finishing touches. However, Yashasvi Jaiswal's form is a concern for RR, as the opener has struggled, recording scores of 1, 29, and 4 in his first three games.

The bowling squad for RR includes Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Tushar Deshpande, all of whom need to elevate their performance to contain the PBKS batting lineup.

Historically, PBKS and RR have clashed 28 times in the IPL, with Rajasthan holding the upper hand with 16 victories compared to Punjab's 12.

When will the PBKS vs RR match be held?

The match is scheduled for Saturday evening, set to commence at 7:30 PM IST, with the toss at 7 PM IST.

Where will the PBKS vs RR match take place?

The venue for the match is Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, located in Chandigarh.

Where can fans watch the live broadcast of the PBKS vs RR match?

The match will be live on the Star Sports network.

Where can fans stream the PBKS vs RR match live?

Live streaming of the match will be available on the JioHotstar app.

Squads:

Punjab Kings: Nehal Wadhera, Harnoor Singh, Shreyas Iyer, Musheer Khan, Pyla Avinash, Prabhsimran Singh, Vishnu Vinod, Josh Inglis, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Praveen Dubey, Priyansh Arya, Azmatullah Omarzai, Aaron Hardie, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Suryansh Shedge, Shashank Singh, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Xavier Bartlett, Kuldeep Sen, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Thakur.

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Sanju Samson, Dhruv Jurel, Kunal Singh Rathore, Riyan Parag, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Nitish Rana, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Kwena Maphaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Ashok Sharma, Jofra Archer.