CSK vs RR, IPL 2021: Who will score the most runs in today's match?
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will take on the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Match 12 of the IPL 2021 season at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday. Both teams are coming on the back of impressive wins and will be brimming with confidence going into this encounter.
Deepak Chahar's destructive opening spell against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) was enough for CSK to register their first win of the season. RR, on the other hand, needed the Proteas duo of David Miller and Chris Morris to complete a thrilling win over the Delhi Capitals (DC) in their last game.
CSK have always batted deep and have a lot of flexibility in their batting line-up. But the same cannot be said about RR, as they look overly dependent on their skipper Sanju Samson now that England star Ben Stokes has left the Indian shores.
3 batsmen to watch out for in CSK vs RR encounter
After witnessing a run-fest at the Wankhede on Sunday, where even a target as big as 195 was comfortably chased down by DC, both CSK and RR know that setting up a daunting total will be vital.
With a number of star batsmen on both sides, let's have a look at three players who could end up being the highest run-scorer in the encounter.
#3 Moeen Ali
The idea to slot England all-rounder Moeen Ali at No.3 by CSK did raise a few eyebrows, given the fact that they have their main batsmen Suresh Raina back for this season. However, the decision seems to be working at the moment for the three-time IPL champions.
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With scores of 36 and 46, Ali has looked at home in the CSK top order and is justifying his INR 7 crore price tag. CSK skipper MS Dhoni and coach Stephen Fleming have been vocal about making the most of the field restrictions and Ali is potentially fitting the bill at the moment.
With a counter-attacking 82 runs from two games and also a wicket through his handy off-spin, Ali is fast becoming one of the best utility players in this IPL season. He certainly has the form and ability to score big against RR.
#2 Jos Buttler
In one of his recent interviews, Jos Buttler stated that the Wankhede Stadium is one of his favourite places to play in the world. The pace and bounce in the wicket certainly suits his style of play and the destructive Englishman has played a number of unbelievable match-winning knocks here.
There was a debate about the position at which Buttler should bat for RR. Many consider him to be one of the best T20 openers and feel RR were underutilizing him in the middle-order.
However, the finger injury that has ruled Stokes out of the IPL 2021 season has opened the doors for Buttler to bat at the top of the order again. This season has shown the importance of making the most of the powerplay since scoring becomes difficult once the fields open up.
Thus, someone like Buttler could be the X-factor that a depleted RR side will need to fire consistently for them. Although he missed out in his last game, one can never count Buttler out to produce a match-winning performance, especially at the Wankhede.
#1 Sanju Samson
Another player who just loves batting at the Wankhede Stadium is RR skipper Sanju Samson. The 26-year-old played an unbelievable knock of 119 off just 63 balls in their season opener against PBKS that almost won his side the game.
Samson loves to play through the line and the surface at the Wankhede Stadium allows him to do exactly that. He was unfortunate to miss out in the last game against DC. but when it comes to playing against CSK, Samson has some great memories.
The youngster played a blinder against MS Dhoni and his men when both teams faced off at Sharjah last year. That memorable outing, which saw Samson score 74 off 32 balls, will certainly be on the RR skipper's mind and make him feel better before he even walks out to bat.
With Stokes ruled out, Samson is RR's biggest hope in the batting department. He has a cool head on his shoulders and is most likely to get a big score against CSK on Monday.