On the other hand, the Royals have managed to win only one of their three fixtures. They lost to Chennai Super Kings in their previous match to slip down to the sixth spot. Sanju Samson and his men will be eyeing a second win.
India Test skipper Virat Kohli was among the few cricketers who received a higher actual salary according to the salary details of the retained Indian Premier League players listed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Friday.
With Cricket Australia repeatedly stressing on the "unrealistic" challenge of hosting the 16-team T20 World Cup in October-November, the likelihood of having the IPL has increased significantly in a year thrown haywire by the COVID-19 pandemic. The ICC recently pushed its final decision on the T20 World Cup to next month but the BCCI has already zeroed in on the September-October window for the tournament.
Gujarat Titans have been firing on all cylinders, with their batting prowess and bowling might.
Will Ravi Shastri be retained or will the BCCI opt for a new face?
'Opposition to the idea of a state flag has come from the small thinking pseudo-nationalists, who are the ones pushing Hindi-Hindu-Hindustan.' 'Identifying India wrongly as a one language, one religion nation,' says Aakar Patel.
Against England on Monday and then Wednesday's game versus Australia, the Indian team management would look to give the players who are still not automatic choices in the playing XI, more overs to bat or bowl to get a better idea about their current form.
Mumbai Indians have a 10-5 record against KKR. Can they maintain the advantage?
The likes of Virat Kohli, David Warner will be aiming to silence their critics, while KKR's Shreyas Iyer and Lucknow Super Giants' K L Rahul will be looking to prove themselves after being the handed captaincy of their respective franchises.
Their World Cup build-up halted by West Indies team's sudden mid-series pullout, India would resume the preparations for the mega-event when they square off against under-cooked sub-continental rivals Sri Lanka in a hastily-arranged ODI series starting in Cuttack on Sunday.
Rishabh Pant of the Delhi Daredevils, with a most valuable player index of 897, is the most valuable player of IPL 11.
K L Rahul, the kingpin of the KXIP batting, is second (MVPI: 601), followed by Sunrisers Captain Kane Williamson (543). Jos Buttler, after his match-winning batting for Rajasthan Royals on Friday night, is just 4 'runs' behind at 539, and M S Dhoni is fifth with 538 'runs'.
'We knew these youngsters could turn out to be match-winners and we waited patiently for the last three years because success doesn't come overnight, it takes time.'
The cricketing world is all set for another feast with the Indian Premier League.
Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will be in a tight corner without their 'mystery spinner' Sunil Narine, reported for chucking, as they gear up to face Rajasthan Royals in an Indian Premier League match at Eden Gardens. Beginning with Rajasthan, Kolkata will go on to complete all their remaining five home outings by May 9.
Suresh Raina was presented a golden opportunity to force his way back into the Test squad after being named captain of the Board President's XI, which will play the West Indies in a three-day warm-up match ahead of the Test series that follows the ongoing One-day internationals.
Mumbai Indians' consistency on the big day paid off again during a season where there were more than 30 last-over finishes.
The eighth edition of the Indian Premier League, says Haresh Pandya, provides Yuvraj Singh a chance to make up for time lost and opportunities missed or squandered.
Former India spinner Murali Kartik assesses the spinning scene in IPL9.
Fascinating predictions for the years ahead. A revealing excerpt from Tim Wigmore and Freddie Wilde's Cricket 2.0: Inside The T20 Revolution.
A look at the squads for the seventh season of the Indian Premier League at the conclusion of the two-day auction in Bangalore.
The IPL, all of a sudden, may have some catching up to do with the Big Bash.
India Test regulars like Cheteswar Pujara and Ishant Sharma have also thrown their hat into the ring with base prices of Rs 50 and Rs 75 lakh respectively.