PBKS is in explosive form this season and is batting record-breakingly. Whereas RR’s bowling is strong, but batting remains a matter of concern. To win the match, RR will have to perform better in every department.
Whose match is IPL 2026 today: The match of Punjab Kings (PBKS) vs Rajasthan Royals (RR) is to be held in the 40th match of IPL 2026 on Tuesday 28 April. Before this match to be held at New Chandigarh Stadium, both the teams have reached the venue. While Punjab Kings have not lost a single match so far in this IPL season, Rajasthan has also performed well. While Punjab is on top in the points table with 13 points, Rajasthan is at fourth position with 10 points.
Aggressive batting of PBKS: Pressure from power play only
Punjab Kings’ batting has been very aggressive this season. Priyansh Arya provides a fast start in the powerplay, while Prabhsimran Singh maintains the run pace. New player Cooper Connolly is also making an impact and Shreyas Iyer takes control of the innings as soon as he comes into the middle order. If there is anything left at the end, then Marcus Stoinis and Shashank Singh score runs at a fast pace and take the team to a strong score.
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Record breaking performance of PBKS in IPL 2025-26
In IPL 2025, PBKS made the record of scoring the most runs in a season by scoring 3140 runs. In IPL 2026, he improved it further and scored runs at a rate of 11.74 runs per over in his 6 innings, which is the fastest in IPL history. Not only this, his per wicket average of 43.83 is also the best figure ever for any team.
Great start after record chase
Recently PBKS completed the biggest successful run chase in T20 history, in which they also had 7 balls left. After this win, the team has 13 points in seven matches, which is one of the best starts of any team in IPL history.
Will RR’s bowling be able to stop PBKS?
Now the biggest challenge before Rajasthan Royals is to stop the strong batting of Punjab Kings. Jofra Archer has been very effective against the top order this season. His 13 wickets are considered equal to 17.3 ‘impact wickets’. He has many times given a great start to the team by taking a wicket on the very first ball of the match, which can become a threat for PBKS. Nandre Berger has also consistently performed well. Although he has only 8 wickets to his name, 46% of the shots played on his bowling have been miss-hits, which shows his effectiveness.
RR’s batting cause for concern
RR’s batting has not been balanced this season. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Suryavanshi have given good starts, but the middle order has been weak. Batsmen from numbers 4 to 8 have scored only one half century this season, their strike rate was 126 and average was 20.6.
Hetmyer’s poor form and team combination
Shimron Hetmyer has scored only 72 runs in 6 innings, his average is 14.40 and strike rate is 116.12. In such a situation, the question before RR is whether an aggressive batsman like Lhuan-dre Pretorius should be given a chance in his place.
Punjab Kings (Probable Playing 11)
Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vaishak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Rajasthan Royals (Probable Playing 11)
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ryan Parag (capt), Donovan Ferreira, Shimron Hetmyer/Luan-Dre Pretorius, Ravindra Jadeja, Joffra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Brijesh Sharma, Nandre Berger, Ravi Bishnoi.