The Punjab Kings will play their second day game of the 2022 Tata IPL when they take on the Rajasthan Royals on Saturday, May 7th at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.

The Royals may be third on the points table with the Kings in seventh. However, PBKS is only one win behind RR. RR have 12 points from 10 games, while PBKS have 10 points from as many games.

Ahead of this encounter, below are some key talking points.

PBKS and RR - recent form

The Punjab Kings have seen alternate wins and losses in this tournament. The trend in the last five games may not have changed much, but they will take a lot of confidence from their most recent game - an eight-wicket win against Gujarat Titans.

The Rajasthan Royals may have three wins in the last five games, but the last two matches have been losses, albeit close ones. They will look to regroup and establish their position in the top four.

Below are the teams forms starting from the most recent game -

PBKS - W, L, W, L, L

RR - L, L, W, W, W

The Dhawans have delivered

Both Shikhar Dhawan and Rishi Dhawan have delivered for the team when needed. While Shikhar has consistently given the team good starts, Rishi has lent depth to the batting order and got crucial breakthroughs with the ball.

So far, Shikhar has 369 runs in 10 games, averaging 46.13 and with three half centuries to his name. He has been a standout performer with the bat for the team. Rishi Dhawan, on the other hand, has picked three crucial wickets in three games - Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya, contributing to PBKS’ wins against both CSK and GT.

Stopping the Jos juggernaut

Jos Buttler has been exceptional with the bat, scoring 588 runs in 10 matches at an average of 65.33, a strike rate of 150.77, and three centuries and half centuries each. Stopping him from scoring big will be crucial in containing RR to a modest score. In RR’s most recent loss, Buttler scored only 22 (25) before being sent away.

Shikhar Dhawan vs Yuzvendra Chahal

Dhawan has managed 73 runs off 64 deliveries from the current Purple Cap holder, while Chahal has dismissed Dhawan thrice in their meetings. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top in this contest again.

Thrilling recent past between the teams

In IPL 2021, the teams had two very close encounters, with RR winning the first by two runs while defending a total of 185/10, and PBKS winning the second by four runs, defending a total of 221/6.

Arshdeep Singh took eight wickets in these games, including a fifer in the first (5/32) and a three-wicket haul in the second (3/35).

Playing at the Wankhede

PBKS have played at the Wankhede twice with contrasting results - a loss against KKR first and then a win against CSK. The Royals, however, have played four games at the Wankhede already, losing the first and last games, against RCB and KKR respectively, and winning the two in the middle, against LSG and DC.

The teams will lock horns at 3.30 PM IST on Saturday afternoon at the Wankhede Stadium. Beat the afternoon heat with an equally hot Tata IPL encounter.