Shikhar Dhawan
Shikhar Dhawan. Image Source: Twitter

DC vs RR Match Preview- IPL 2021 Match 36. The 36th match of IPL 2021 has Delhi Capitals (DC) take on Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Both teams have begun their UAE campaign on a positive note and would look to continue the winning momentum.

The two teams have played against each other once this season on 15th April at Wankhede Cricket Stadium. Riding on a solid half-century from Rishabh Pant, Delhi Capitals posted 147 in the first innings. David Miller, however, was a notch better in the second innings as his 62-run knock guided the team to a 3-wicket win.

DC vs RR Match Preview- IPL 2021 Match 36

Delhi Capitals:

Delhi Capitals
Delhi Capitals (Image Credit: Twitter)

Delhi Capitals have only lost two games this season and one of them came against Rajasthan Royals. They would be keen on taking revenge on Saturday. They have currently occupied the top spot on the points table with 7 wins in 9 matches.

Rishabh Pant and Co. have begun their UAE campaign with a comprehensive 8-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad. Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje played together for the first time this season and the decision reaped rewards. The duo combined to pick 5 wickets as SRH only managed to score 134 runs in the first innings. Axar Patel was also brilliant for his 2 for 21 in 4 overs.

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Delhi Capitals chased down the order quite comfortably in 17.5 overs. Shikhar Dhawan played a sensible 42-run knock off 37 balls to ensure Delhi of a decent start. While Shaw ( 11 off 8) went back early, Shreyas Iyer made a beautiful comeback with an unbeaten 41-ball 47. Rishabh Pant also remained unbeaten at 21-ball 35 as DC chased down the score with ease. Delhi Capitals have now secured 7 wins in 9 matches and are just one win away from confirming their playoff berth. However, their eyes will definitely be on the number one spot.

Full Squad: Shreyas Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Avesh Khan, Axar Patel, Ishant Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Prithvi Shaw, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan, Lalit Yadav, Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetmyer, Anrich Nortje, Steve Smith, Umesh Yadav, Ripal Patel, Lukman Hussain Meriwala, M Siddharth, Tom Curran, Sam Billings, Pravin Dubey, Vishnu Vinod.

Rajasthan Royals:

Sanju Samson, Kartik Tyagi, Rajasthan Royals, RR, IPL 2021
Rajasthan Royals. (Photo: BCCI)

Rajasthan Royals would be ecstatic about their performance against Punjab Kings in their last game at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Their batting approach was impressive as aggressiveness has become their new best friend. RR took on the attack right from the onset. Despite the absence of Stokes and Buttler, they have formed a dangerous batting unit.

Evin Lewis, who is in the form of his life, played a great 21-ball 36-run knock in the last game, while Jaiswal was equally brilliant with his 36-ball 49. The presence of Liam Livingstone in the middle order makes RR a formidable batting unit. He looked dangerous for his 17-ball 25, however, the one who impressed the most was Mahipal Lomror. The southpaw ripped apart the opposition with some gigantic hits, smashing 43 runs off just 17 balls.

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Mahipal Lomror
Image Source: Twitter

Rajasthan Royals looked to score 200-plus total till the time Lomror was there. However, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami made a stellar comeback to restrict Rajasthan to 185. Rajasthan’s bowling, however, wasn’t as good as their batting. They leaked a lot of runs and dropped a lot of catches.

The likes of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal gave Punjab a great start as Rajasthan fell short of options. Punjab were cruising to the total till the 18th over of the innings, however, two sensational last overs from Mustafizur Rahman and Kartik Tyagi helped RR snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Needing 4 runs on the last overs, Kartik Tyagi gave just a single run as he bowled some sensational yorkers to deny Punjab of scoring runs.

With that win, Rajasthan Royals now find themselves at fifth spot with 4 wins in 8 matches.

Full Squad: Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahim, Chetan Sakariya, K.C. Cariappa, Kuldip Yadav, Liam Livingstone, Akash Singh, Glenn Phillips, Tabraiz Shamsi, Oshane Thomas, Evin Lewis.