Rajasthan Royals vs Gujarat Titans, 47th Match - Live Cricket Score, Commentary

We've made a couple of changes in our combination on Fantasy Handbook, do check it out. Interesting that the Royals have opted to bowl again, given how their last three run-chases have gone. They'll be desperate to correct the mistakes and put things right this time.

Rajasthan Royals will become the first team to be eliminated from Play Offs contention if they lose tonight!

Here are the Impact substitutes for both the teams:

Gujarat Titans Impact Subs: Ishant Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Anuj Rawat, Arshad Khan, Dasun Shanaka

Rajasthan Royals Impact Subs: Shubham Dubey, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwal, Tushar Deshpande, Kunal Singh Rathore

Teams:

Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag(c), Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Sandeep Sharma, Yudhvir Singh Charak

Gill: Would've bowled first as well. But it looks like a good wicket. Some grass on the wicket, always nice to see that. We are looking to take each game as it is, not looking at the past. Important to be ruthless in this format. One change: Karim Janat makes his debut.

Parag: We'll bowl first. Pretty similar wicket to the one we played against LSG. Should be a good wicket, some low bounce, saw some dew last night so bowling first. Everyone in our team has gone through situations like this and they know how to get out of it. We've had honest talks. Just have to put a game together collectively and hope for a good result. We've played 35 overs of good cricket in the last three games. That's how cruel the IPL is. Two changes: Farooqi goes out, Theekshana comes in. Tushar goes out and Yudhvir comes in.

Rajasthan Royals have won the toss and have opted to field

Update: Karim Janat has received his maiden cap from Rashid Khan and will make his debut for Gujarat Titans this evening.

Shimron Hetmyer: (Most frustrating part) Not being able to finish the games that I think I should have. The last three games kinda just put a damper on a few things for me personally. Having to get 9 twice and in the last game we needed 40-something off 20-something when I got out, those three games really ... something I am thinking about most of the days when I am back in my room. (On Sanju Samson's absence) A player of his calibre not being able to represent us, it's difficult. You can't really plan injuries, that's just part of the game, we just have to try to move forward. For me, it's just to be there till the end really and also not take it to the last over. In T20 cricket, it's really easy to say you could just leave it till the end but I always believe if you can finish it in 15-16 and then go back to the hotel, that's fine with me. It's still a win at the end of the day. (On batting higher) There's not a lot I could possibly say to that but I guess we'll just wait and see how today goes.

Pitch Report | Daren Ganga and Matthew Hayden: "Third match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in this season. It's relatively hot, there's a gentle breeze blowing across. It's pitch number 6, the square boundaries - 63m and 67m, down the ground - 71m. Two previous matches here this season, the average first innings score is 177. Since 2024, we haven't seen a 200+ score. When you look down at this wicket, you can see a very good grass covering, it's very hard, the cracks are slightly moving, so it may not be a 200+ wicket, but a 180+ score here will be in the game. It looks better than that. All the live grass here, you think the ball is gonna skid on nicely. Don't think there'll be any sideways turn either. When you think about the dimensions, they are juicy for these power-hitters. 180+ will be a very good total."

Rajasthan's opponent tonight is a team which just knows how to get the job done. Their top three is the envy of many teams, as is their bowling attack which boasts incredible talent and variety. They're one of the rare teams to consistently feature only three overseas players in their lineup, forced by the absence of KG Rabada. But they continue to shine in different conditions, the latest being their win at the Eden Gardens where they outplayed the hosts completely.

6.30pm local: Hello and welcome to our coverage of Match 47 which has the Rajasthan Royals taking on the Gujarat Titans. These two teams are at opposite ends of the table, with the Titans marching along superbly towards the playoffs, while the Royals are all but out of the race. It has been one heartbreak after another for the Royals who have somehow lost their last three matches from winning positions in run-chases. Their standing in the league would've been completely different had their batters finished the job as expected. Instead, they now lie in ninth place, hanging on by an improbable mathematical chance of making it through.

Preview by Aayush Puthran

Rajasthan Royals' return to Jaipur, their home city, after a fortnight is likely to be uncomfortably warm. And the summer heat is not the only reason. With three losses on the road since they last played a home game, has left them with only a mathematical possibility of qualifying for the playoffs.

On their return to the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, they find themselves set to play with an opposition with a different motive. At this point, on paper, Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals are staring at two extreme possibilities. One - with the joint most wins this season so far - is aiming to clinch the top spot in the league phase, while the other - with the joint-least wins - is hoping to avoid the wooden spoon. For that reason as the primary driver, the contest on Monday evening holds relevance.

Titans have the momentum and form riding in their favour, but they wouldn't want to make the race to the top two any more exciting than it already is by slipping up in Jaipur, a venue where they haven't lost as yet.

On the other hand, it wouldn't have been as terrible a position for Royals as they find themselves in now had they not come out second-best in three close encounters where they were positioned to win. That's not it. The spinners not turning up, loss of form for crucial players and the partial availability of their captain, Sanju Samson has all played its part to leave them with only two victories in nine games, and none so far in their primary home ground.

There is ample reason to believe that Royals have been much better than where they find themselves on the points table. But that's visibly not encouraging enough for them now. The new season and the new cycle have posed new challenges to Royals, and even with mathematical possibility of making it through to the playoffs on, they have already thrown in the towel. Maybe seeking respite from all the heat!

When: Monday, April 28, 2025, 7:30 PM IST

Where: Rajasthan Royals vs Gujarat Titans, Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur

What to expect: Run scoring hasn't been the easiest in Jaipur, but that has allowed for a fair contest between the batters and bowlers. Expect another encounter where score in the range of 170-190 could provide for a thrilling contest.

Head to head: Gujarat Titans have 6-1 win-loss record against Rajasthan Royals, winning both their encounters in Jaipur

Team Watch:

Rajasthan Royals:

Injuries/Unavailability: Sanju Samson will continue to sit out, and Riyan Parag will lead the side again.

Tactics & Matchups: Jofra Archer could be critical upfront. He has dismissed Shubman Gill thrice in the 15-ball face-off between the duo in IPL. Gill has managed to score only 10 runs against the English pacer. He hasn't had it much better against the other Royals pacers either. Akash Madhwal and Tushar Deshpande have also dismissed him twice each while he has scored at a strike rate of 65.62 against Sandeep Sharma.

Probable XII: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Jofra Archer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Akash Madhwal, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande/Shubham Dubey

Gujarat Titans:

Injuries/Unavailability: Kagiso Rabada and Gerald Coetzee are likely to be unavailable for the contest.

Tactics & Matchups: Mohammed Siraj, who has the highest dot-ball percentage this season could be handy to keep the Royals batters in check in the powerplay, a phase in which they have dominated.

Probable XII: Shubman Gill, Sai Sudarshan, Jos Buttler, Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Washington Sundar, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ishant Sharma

Did you know?

What they said:

Death batting has not been that easy (this season). You have to be really skillful to get the ball out of the ropes as a batsman because the ball has obviously been changed. In the previous years, you see the ball gets wet and the execution becomes tougher. Now the execution is a bit more easier (for the bowlers) with the ball being drier - Shahrukh Khan, Gujarat Titans

We're probably out of the tournament in terms of the points table, but that doesn't mean there's not a lot to play for, obviously as a team we want to make sure we finish the season strong and continue playing well - Shane Bond, Rajasthan Royals' bowling coach

Squads:

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

Gujarat Titans Squad: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Sherfane Rutherford, Washington Sundar, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Anuj Rawat, Karim Janat, Arshad Khan, Jayant Yadav, Dasun Shanaka, Kulwant Khejroliya, Gerald Coetzee, Manav Suthar, Kumar Kushagra, Gurnoor Brar, Nishant Sindhu