(L-R) Ben Stokes, Dwaine Pretorius and Suyash Parbhudesai. IPL 2023: Inconsistent Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will host the injury-ravaged Chennai Super Kings at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday.
CSK skipper MS Dhoni is nursing a knee injury; all-rounder Ben Stokes is tipped to be sidelined till the end of this month; Deepak Chahar, Sisanda Magala and Simarjeet Singh are all injured. It is going to be tough for CSK to put together a balanced playing XI against RCB, who would to look to build on after their thumping win over Delhi.
RCB had looked good in patches and are heavily dependent on their openers, Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli, to deliver. The middle-order, apart from Glen Maxwell, has failed to perform. Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik, and Mahipal Lomror have yet to put up a single good show.
Here are some tip-offs ahead of the match
Unfit Stokes ruled out
Ben Stokes is likely to regain full fitness by the end of the month. “He is nursing a knee injury, which you can see in some of his movement, which is hindering him somewhat,” CSK coach Stephen Fleming had said after the last match.
Stokes has played only two games for CSK in the tournament and is working his way back from the toe injury. The Engand all-rounder has even bowled at the nets in Bengaluru, but he is unlikely to play on Monday.
Pretorius for Magala
South Africa pacer Sisanda Magala bowled only two overs against Rajasthan Royals before leaving the field with a split webbing. He is set to be out for at least two weeks. He had incidentally joined the CSK as a replacement for New Zealand’s Kyle Jamieson. He might get replaced by Dwaine Pretorius.
Prabhudesai to replace Rawat
RCB had put faith in Anuj Rawat as their Impact Player, but the southpaw had failed to live up to the potential. In this match, RCB can give a chance to Suyash Prabhudesai, who might replace one of the bowlers when they chase and be an effective No 7 if they bat first.
Venue Stats
The Chinnaswamy track is usually full of runs and the ball often skids on under lights in dewy conditions. Fifty-seven sixes have been hit across three matches at the Chinnaswamy – the most at a venue this season.
Predicted XI
RCB XI – Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Mahipal Lomror, Glenn Maxwell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Wayne Parnell, Mohammed Siraj, Vijaykumar Vyshak
Impact Player – Suyash Prabhudesai
CSK XI – Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ajinkya Rahane, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Maheesh Theekshana, Dwaine Pretorius, Tushar Deshpande, Akash Singh
Impact Player – Ambati Rayudu
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