Dubai International cricket stadium will host match 25 of IPL 2020 between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings. Both teams come into this match on the back of losses in their previous game. While RCB lost to Deli Capitals, CSK lost a close match against KKR. It’s a mid-table clash with RCB just above CSK in the points table. RCB is placed fifth, while CSK is just below them at sixth. This is the first time these two teams are facing off against each other this season. More about the Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore match preview in detail below.
CSK vs RCB: The Heavyweight Clash
If ever there was a time for a turnaround for the Men in Yellow, it is now. They have their backs against the wall, with four losses out of six games and the management with their hands on their heads. From sorting out their team combination to finding the perfect winning formulae, CSK has failed to get both of them in the season so far. However, in between, there have been individual brilliance from a couple of senior players in the side. Their loss especially against KKR will hurt them badly. It is their batting that seems to be the worry rather than their batting. Suresh Raina‘s absence is being felt in every game.
Their bowling looks sorted. Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Deepak Chahar have been the core of the bowling attack this season and has performed more often than not. Going forward their batting needs a way to support their bowlers. CSK vs RCB is often referred to as the battle of the heavyweights with MS Dhoni and Kohli facing off against each other.
These two teams have played some very close contests previously and both hate losing to each other. This competitive spirit is what makes this RCB vs CSK contest more enticing.
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RCB, on the other hand, will be buoyed by their commanding win over Rajasthan Royals. They again lost to Delhi Capitals, however, in their next game. Like CSK, RCB too have not found the winning formulae and the perfect team combination. Aaron Finch has been inconsistent, and Virat Kohli is yet to bat to his best. AB De Villiers has also shown just glimpses of his form. This team too like CSK needs to perform as a team.
RCB’s Batting Woes
While the batting hasn’t clicked so far for RCB, their bowling has. Against SRH and RR the RCB bowlers managed to keep the opposition to a par score. While they defended 163 against Sunrisers, they restricted the Royals to 154 bowling first. Against CSK, they have a task on their hands with Faf Du Plessis and Shane Watson both in form and raring to go. At the end, it all boils down to how Kohli uses Yuzvendra Chahal against the CSK big-hitters.
Head to Head
In the 25 matches played between both teams so far, CSK has won 16, while RCB 8. One game ended in no-result. In the last five games between both teams, CSK has win four, while RCB just one and that too by a one-run margin in 2019 in Bengaluru.
Weather & Pitch Conditions
The evenings have started to get a bit pleasant in Dubai. The temperatures are expected between 35 to 38 degrees. CSK id the only team to have won chasing at this venue. Nine out of the 10 games played here so far has been won by the team batting first. CSK is yet to bat first in this year’s IPL. With both captains favoring to chase, it will be interesting to see, who bats first.
Team News: Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
CSK brought in Karn Sharma in place of Pitush Chawla who did a great job with the ball. Meanwhile, Kedar Jadhav was heavily criticised for showing no intent in the chase against KKR. With them needing to win almost every game from hereon, it will be interesting to see if they make any changes to their side.
For RCB, if Chris Morris is fit to play, he will be the only change in the playing XI replacing Moeen Ali. The rest of the side will remain the same.
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Squads
MS Dhoni (captain, WK), M Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Kedar Jadhav, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Lungi Ngidi, Deepak Chahar, Piyush Chawla, Imran Tahir, Mitchell Santner, Josh Hazlewood, Shardul Thakur, Sam Curran, N Jagadeesan, KM Asif, Monu Kumar, R Sai Kishore, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Karn Sharma
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Virat Kohli (captain), AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel, Aaron Finch, Josh Philippe, Chris Morris, Moeen Ali, Mohammed Siraj, Shahbaz Ahmed, Devdutt Padikkal, Yuzvendra Chahal, Navdeep Saini, Dale Steyn, Pawan Negi, Isuru Udana, Shivam Dube, Umesh Yadav, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Washington Sundar, Pavan Deshpande, Adam Zampa
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