Match 64 of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season will be vital for the Rajasthan Royals (RR), who take on the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Jaipur in what is potentially a do-or-die game for them in their search for a play-off spot.
For the game, here we present our preview and predictions.
The Royals still have a chance to qualify for the play-offs, but for that it’s important that they win this particular fixture. RR have suffered due to inconsistent performances — often with the bat, and a few times with the ball. Their fielding has also been dismal at times, with missed run-outs, dropped catches, and poor ground fielding all contributing to their defeats.
Their dependency on the top-order batters has also been quite evident, as their middle order has scarcely performed this season. Their opening bowling partnership of Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger worked well for a couple of games before the two started to leak runs heavily, while Ravi Bishnoi hasn’t been as effective as he has been in recent seasons.
RR played the Delhi Capitals in their most recent fixture. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi shone again, scoring a blistering 46 off 21 and hitting even the experienced Mitchell Starc for plenty of runs. Dhruv Jurel and captain Riyan Parag carried the momentum forward with fifties, but one over from Starc stemmed the RR onslaught as he took three wickets in four balls to bring DC back into the game.
Youngster Madhav Tiwari and Lungi Ngidi too bowled exceptional spells, taking two wickets each and conceding fewer than 30 runs in four overs. Though Starc conceded a few more runs, he took four wickets and bowled superbly at the death to limit RR to fewer than 200, when it seemed like they would get around 220–230 at one point.
In response, DC openers KL Rahul and Abhishek Porel both exploited the Powerplay and set up a 105-run partnership before RR could find a breakthrough. Though DC lost a couple of wickets, in the end they chased down the target comfortably, with captain Axar Patel (34* off 18) and Ashutosh Sharma (18* off 5) taking their team to victory. Mitchell Starc was adjudged the player of the match for his incredible second spell that turned the tables for the Capitals.
As for their opponents, LSG haven’t much to play for, though they could ruin RR’s play-off chances with a win here. The last game they played was against the Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk, which saw them beat the record IPL champions on their home turf.
Batting first, the CSK opening pair of Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad failed to give the team a good enough start. Gaikwad has not been up to his usual top standards this season, while Samson has carried the run-scoring burden more often but failed on this occasion.
Newbie Akash Singh impressed with the ball for LSG, dismissing both openers as well as the dangerous Urvil Patel, who scored the joint-fastest IPL half-century in the previous game. Youngster Kartik Sharma fought a lone battle for CSK, hitting 71 off 42 before Shivam Dube’s quickfire 32* off 16 helped his side reach a fighting total of 187/5.
LSG’s response included a superb opening partnership of 135 runs between Mitchell Marsh (90 off 38) and Josh Inglis (36 off 32) that virtually took the game away from CSK. Nicholas Pooran then finished the run chase with a quickfire cameo to take the Super Giants home comfortably with 20 balls left.
There will be no pressure on LSG for this game as they are already out of the play-off race. Their bowling attack has really come to the fore this season, however, especially the variety they boast in the fast-bowling department. It has been heartening to see the likes of Prince Yadav and Akash Singh prove themselves on one of the biggest stages of franchise cricket.
Coming to this match-up, we have a battle between the two opening pairs: Jaiswal–Sooryavanshi and Marsh–Inglis. If either pair gets going, the opposition could be out of the game within ten overs, so finding an early breakthrough will be crucial for either side.
Nicholas Pooran has found his mojo as the tournament has gone on, but unfortunately his purple patch has arrived a little too late for the Super Giants. However, the middle orders of both teams have shown patchy performances, so it will be important for their top-order batters to come good.
If we compare the bowling attacks of the two sides, LSG may have a slight edge, though desperation could motivate the Royals to take this match more seriously. Their hunt for a play-off spot makes RR our favourites for the win here.
Fantasy XI: Mitchell Marsh, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c) (wk), Dhruv Jurel, Mukul Choudhary, Donovan Ferreira, Shahbaz Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav
Venue: Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Winners Prediction: Rajasthan Royals
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