Delhi Capitals (DC) will be out to regain the top spot in the points table as they take on Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Match 23 of the Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.

Searching for their third win of the season, RR, who are looking to halt their three-match losing streak, return to their happy-hunting ground where they have registered two wins from as many games.

RR kicked off their IPL 2020 campaign in style, beating Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in Sharjah. However, the Steve Smith-led unit were beaten by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Mumbai Indians (MI) across Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

DC, meanwhile, have won four games out of five. Shreyas Iyer and Co. started their campaign with a thrilling Super Over-win against KXIP before coming out on top against CSK. While Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) denied DC a hat-trick of wins, the Delhi franchise bounced back strongly, beating KKR and RCB in the subsequent games.

While DC will be out to regain the top spot in the points table, RR will be keen to return to winning ways, halting DC’s winning juggernaut and these are the players who could be vital to their respective teams’ fortunes in Sharjah.

Sanju Samson

He set the stage on fire for RR as they took on CSK and KXIP in their first two games, scoring 74 and 85 in Sharjah. While he has not scored big in the following games, a return to Sharjah will give Sanju Samson a chance to renew his batting form,. and if If he fires like he did against CSK and KXIP, RR will be in with a chance of a winning return.

Shreyas Iyer

The last time DC played in Sharjah, Shreyas Iyer hammered an unbeaten 88 off 38 balls with the help of 7 fours and 6 sixes. The DC skipper, who has 181 runs against his name in the IPL 2020this season, will once again be eager to deliver the goods and power his team to a victory in Sharjah.

Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler moved past 1500 IPL runs and brought up his 10th IPL fifty on his way to a 44-ball 70-run blitz against MI. The RR wicketkeeper-batsman will be looking to continue his good run of form in Sharjah, a venue which has remained a batsman’s paradise in the IPL 2020.

Kagiso Rabada

Kagiso Rabada has 12 wickets to his account from 5 games and has been spearheading the DC attack with aplomb. The current Purple Cap-holder picked four wickets in his last game against RCB and could play the decisive role against the RR batting brigade of Smith, Buttler and Samson.

Wild Card

Prithvi Shaw

Prithvi Shaw has two fifties and a score in the 40s in this year’s IPL. When DC last played in Sharjah, the right-handed batsman set the tone for DCthe team, scoring a 41-ball 66 against KKR. He followed that innings with a quickfire 42 off 23 balls against RCB, and will be targeting another fine outing with the bat while opening the batting for DC.

Stats

• RR’s highest score at this venue: 226/6 in 19.3 overs vs KXIP in IPL 2020

• DC’s highest score at this venue: 228/4 in 20 overs vs KKR in IPL 2020

Win-loss record at this venue:

• RR at this venue: Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1
• DC at this venue: Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1

Approaching Milestones

• Sanju Samson requires 2 catches and 120 runs respectively to complete 50 IPL catches and 2500 IPL runs.
• Jos Buttler needs 2 fours, 7 sixes and 24 runs to complete 100 IPL fours, 50 IPL sixes and 1000 IPL runs for RR.
• Steve Smith is 73 runs away from completing 1000 IPL runs as captain.
• Shreyas Iyer needs 96 runs to complete 1000 IPL runs as captain.
• Rishabh Pant is a six away from completing 100 IPL sixes and needs 93 runs to complete 2000 IPL runs.
• Shikhar Dhawan needs one six and 12 runs respectively to complete 100 IPL sixes and 1000 IPL runs for the Delhi franchise.