IPL 2018, RR vs KXIP: Desperate Rajasthan face Punjab in must-win tie today

In the 40th match of Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL 2018) Ajinkya Rahane’s Rajasthan Royals will take on Kings XI Punjab led by R Ashwin at Sawaiman Singh Stadium in Jaipur. Desperate to stay alive in the IPL 2018, bottom-placed Rajasthan Royals will be aiming to avenge the six-wicket loss to Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), when they last meet at Holkar Stadium on Sunday, in IPL today’s match. Rajasthan Royals have just six points with three wins from nine games while KXIP are placed third on the Vivo IPL points table after six wins from nine games and 12 points in their kitty.

The Ajinkya Rahane-led side succumbed to their third loss in a row, after being hammered by KXIP in Indore and now need to win all their remaining five matches to keep themselves alive in the IPL 2018 while another win for KXIP will almost seal them a play-off berth and a defeat will be the end of the road for Rajasthan Royals. Nothing has gone right for the winners of the inaugural edition of the IPL, who lost their pillar -- Australian Steven Smith -- to ball-tampering scandal. The lackluster performance by Rajasthan Royals’ batsmen and bowlers have landed them in a position where they need to win all their remaining games and also pray for favourable results in order to qualify for the play-offs. Rajasthan Royals are back to Jaipur, where they have recorded two of their three victories, but they need to start afresh. Three consecutive defeats, including a narrow one against Delhi Daredevils, has left them demoralised and their mentor, the legendary Shane Warne, too wore a dejected look in the dugout from where he saw the Royals miss out on half chances.