IPL 2025: Punjab Kings eye season double over wounded RCB in Sunday showdown

New Chandigarh, April 19 (IANS) After dismantling Royal Challengers Bengaluru at their home turf on Friday, a high-flying Punjab Kings unit will look to complete a season double when the two teams clash again in Match 37 of the IPL 2025 on Sunday in New Chandigarh.

It’s been a swift turnaround for RCB, who have barely had time to recover from the hammering they received at home. In Friday’s rain-curtailed encounter in Bengaluru, their batting line-up fell apart ridiculously. Reduced to a 14-overs-per-side affair, RCB could only muster 95 for 9 - with Tim David’s gritty 50 not out being the lone bright spot.

The likes of Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar and Liam Livingstone failed to adapt to a two-paced pitch. Captain Patidar admitted after the match that quick wickets and lack of partnerships cost them dearly.

Placed fourth on the points table with eight points from seven games, RCB will need to regroup quickly. Salt and Kohli must shoulder the responsibility of a strong start while Patidar, Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma and Krunal Pandya will be expected to stabilise the middle order. Their bowling, too, hinges heavily on Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar finding breakthroughs early, but support from Krunal, Yash Dayal and Suyash Sharma will be vital.

On the other hand, Punjab Kings are brimming with confidence. Shreyas Iyer’s men have won five out of seven matches and sit second on the points table, just behind Delhi Capitals. Their bowling unit has been the talk of the season - Arshdeep Singh’s incisive new-ball spells, Xavier Bartlett’s variations, Marco Jansen’s bounce and Yuzvendra Chahal’s rejuvenated middle-overs strike threat have combined to form a formidable attack.

Chahal, in particular, has turned back the clock, providing crucial breakthroughs at pivotal moments - something Iyer openly praised. On the batting front, Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh have laid solid foundations while Inglis, Wadhera, Shashank Singh and Stoinis offer muscle and depth in the middle.

When: The match will be played on Sunday at 3:30 pm IST.

Where: Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh.

Where to watch the match: The broadcast of the match will be available on Star Sports, whereas streaming will be live on JioHotstar.

Squads:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Salam, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethel, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee.

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

--IANS

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