IPL 2021: Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings lock horns in battle of big-hitting batsmen

Rajasthan Royals, winner of the inaugural edition of IPL and Punjab Kings, begin this year’s campaign on April 12 at the Wankhede Stadium. Punjab, yet to win the title, spent big at the auctions and will be hoping to silence the naysayers this year.

The match will feature four of the eight biggest buys of the season. Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith, and Shahrukh Khan will be vying for a spot in the Kings’ playing XI. But all eyes will be on Christopher Morris, bought at a whopping Rs 16.25 crore by Rajasthan Royals – the record buy in IPL history. His tryst with big money during auctions is not new and he is considered to be one of the best players in the IPL circuit. In 2019, Delhi Daredevils fought tooth and nail to retain him in the squad.

Morris was once again one of the biggest buys in IPL 2020 auctions with the RCB buying him for Rs 10 crore. Playing for RCB, the Proteas all-rounder made a lasting impact by scalping 11 wickets from 9 games.

Rajasthan Royals will be hoping that Morris’s ability of bowling yorkers and effortlessly clearing the ground will come good for them in this edition.

Punjab is pinning its hopes on two Aussie speedsters — Jhye Richardson and Riley Meredith — bought for Rs 14 crore and 8 crore, respectively. Meredith is capable of bowling at 140 KPH consistently while Richardson possesses the lethal combination of speed and accuracy that can trouble best of the batsmen in IPL.

The match is also set to feature the biggest Indian buy of the season. Part of the victorious Tamil Nadu squad that won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Shahrukh Khan was bought by Punjab Kings for Rs 5.25 crore in IPL 2021 auctions. Coming from a humble background Khan is set to put the ground ablaze with his hitting abilities. The Kings will be rooting for a repeat performance from Shahrukh of the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy’s quarter-final where he scored an unbeaten 40 from just 19 balls that paved the way for Tamil Nadu to win the tournament.

Match starts at 7:30 pm and can be viewed on the Star Sports network and Disney+ Hotstar.