IPL 2023: Can Rajasthan Royals stop rampaging Chennai Super Kings?

Smarting from back-to-back defeats, Rajasthan Royals will hope to bounce back with a win against Chennai Super Kings in Jaipur on Thursday, but it will be easier said than done as the MS Dhoni-led team has been on a rampage with three victories on the trot.

With its top-order comprising Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Ajinkya Rahane and Shivam Dube firing together most of the time, CSK has notched up three easy wins while the Royals has lost its last two matches.

Thursday's match could turn out to be a battle between CSK's top-order batters and the world class spinners of the Royals.

Conway is the second most prolific batter so far this season with 314 runs from seven matches while a "transformed" Rahane, who hit a 71 not out off just 29 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday, has been in devastating form with 209 runs from five games, at a stupendous strike rate of 199.04, the highest among the batters.

The Royals can take a bit of solace from the fact it emerged victorious in its first meeting of this season against CSK. However, even then, CSK nearly pulled off a win as its talisman Dhoni turned the clock back with his batting, before going down by three runs in front of its home crowd.

However, things are different at the moment with Chennai registering its fifth win of the season, against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on Sunday, to grab the top position in the standings with 10 points.

A win for CSK, at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium on Thursday, will brighten its playoffs prospects further. The Super Kings, a four-time winner, has the personnel to humble the Royals in its own backyard.

Having suffered two consecutive losses, the Royals will be desperate to get its campaign back on track with a clinical performance against the visitors from Chennai.

For the Royals to do well, it is imperative that the likes of Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal and skipper Sanju Samson deliver with the bat and then, on a pitch that has help for the slower bowlers, hope that the seasoned spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal fire.

It may be playing at its base, but the Royals can expect plenty of home team fans at the stands rooting for CSK skipper Dhoni, who is probably appearing in his last IPL season, just like it happened in Kolkata a few days back.

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