Kings XI run into a RCB squad which has grown in confidence by leaps and bounds since their last meeting.
Eyeing a top-two finish, Chennai Super Kings will start as the firm favourites when they take on Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League, in Dubai, on Thursday.
Pat Cummins blasted the quickest half-century in IPL history to power Kolkata Knight Riders to an emphatic five-wicket victory against Mumbai Indians at the MCA stadium in Pune on Wednesday.
After making impressive debuts in their respective openers, Rising Pune Supergiants and GujaratLions will test each others' strengths when the two new entrants clash in the Indian Premier League (IPL), in Rajkot on Thursday. The two teams feature a lot of faces from the suspended Chennai Super Kings and at least six players, who played in the same side till last year, will now be in opposite camps. Close friends and CSK teammates Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Suresh Raina will now be devising strategies as rival captains. Both have admitted that playing in a jersey other than 'yellow' has been very "emotional" but have promised to give their all for their new teams. The Dhoni-led Pune Supergiants were very convincing and dominant when they handed defending champions Mumbai Indians a nine-wicket drubbing. They did not even require their middle order, packed with Dhoni himself and players such as Steven Smith, to come out with the top-order delivering it for them comfortably.
It will not be an easy task for a struggling Punjab side to stand up to the challenge thrown by a RCB team
Punjab, who are on eight points from 11 games, need to win the match to keep their play-offs hopes alive, while KKR (10 points from 11 games) also need a victory to boost their hopes.
Defending champions Mumbai Indians will need their famed top-order batting to fire and turn things around when they take on Punjab Kings in the IPL in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
Captain KL Rahul has been one of the few consistent performers in the formidable-looking Punjab batting unit and he once again led by example against MI
Rahul also backed youngsters in the team saying that the young guns will play a "big role" for KXIP in this season.
Almost out of reckoning for a place in the play-offs, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will look to play party-poopers when they take on an equally struggling Punjab Kings in the battle of laggards in the IPL in Sharjah on Saturday.
KL Rahul and Co would like forget the unsavoury incident and focus on the task ahead.
The two sides experienced contrasting fortunes in their respective tournament opener.
Suryakumar took charge with MI tottering at 79 for 6 and added 72 off 41 balls with Jaydev Unadkat (13 no off 14 balls).
Shubham Arora came out all guns blazing with his maiden List A century as Himachal downed five-time champions Tamil Nadu
This year's IPL was action-packed and Redifff.com reloads some of the memorable moments, in pictures, from this year's competition.
Focus will now be on how Rabada would fare against the likes of Chris Gayle, Lokesh Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and David Miller.
IMAGES from the IPL match played between Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in Mumbai on Friday.
Images from Monday's IPL match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab, in Hyderabad.
Images from Wednesday's IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab, in Bengaluru.
It has been a dramatic turnaround for the KL Rahul-led side after a string a losses earlier in the tournament.
Rising Pune Supergiants now face an uphill task of taming the rampaging Gujarat Lions in an Indian Premier League clash, in Pune, on Friday.
KKR are gradually emerging as a strong contender for a third IPL title
Their bowling attacks struggling to find form, Kings XI Punjab and SunRisers Hyderabad will look towards their power-hitters to do the job when the two erratic teams go head to head in an IPL match, in Dubai, on Thursday.
CSK have better resources but they must utilise them to the hilt. Teams:
Coming off heartbreaking losses, the Indian Premier League game between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab will be a test of character for both sides as they look to get back to winning ways, in Abu Dhabi, on Thursday.
RCB have been inconsistent in their first six games in IPL-12, with both their bowling and batting faltering on many occasions.
Their pride bruised following disastrous campaigns, Kings XI Punjab and Rising Pune Supergiants will look for a graceful exit from the ninth edition of the IPL when they square off against each other for one last time in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. Supergiants are coming into the contest after a victory over Delhi Daredevils at the same venue, their home ground, while Punjab have lost their last two outings -- against RCB and table-toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad. Punjab's fourth and last win this season had come at this very ground, when they had got the better of Mumbai Indians.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will take on table-toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad in another must-win Indian Premier League encounter
A desperate Sunrisers Hyderabad would seek inspiration from skipper David Warner to arrest any further slide when they take on Punjab Kings in an IPL match, in Chennai, on Wednesday.
Images from Friday's IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals, in Abu Dhabi.
A win for Punjab will elevate them to the top four, while a victory for KKR will take them to 14 points
Gujarat Lions and Delhi Daredevils will look to salvage pride when they clash in the Indian Premier League in Kanpur on Wednesday.
Images from Sunday's IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals in Sharjah.
Images from Sunday's IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings, in Mohali.
Chennai Super Kings are virtually through to the Indian Premier League play-offs after a comprehensive six-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bangalore
Birthday-boy Abhimanyu Mithun savoured a rare hat-trick as Karnataka lifted the Vijay Hazare Trophy with a 60-run victory over Tamil Nadu in a rain-hit final, in Bengaluru.
Only pride will be at stake when Delhi Daredevils host embattled Royal Challengers Bangalore in an inconsequential IPL game in New Delhi, on Sunday, with both teams seeking an end to their misfiring campaign on a positive note.
Rising Pune Supergiant, who have gone from strength to strength, will look to seal their place in the Play-offs with a win over inconsistent Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League in New Delhi, on Friday.
Rising Pune Supergiants will stand in the way of Kolkata Knight Riders's revival when they clash in an Indian Premier League T20 match?
Images from Saturday's Indian Premier League match between Kings XI Punjab and SunRisers Hyderabad, in Dubai.
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