Check out the Kings XI Punjab squad for IPL 2014.
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.
Images from the IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bangalore, in Mumbai, on Thursday.
RR will have to get their combination right as only four foreigners can make the playing XI.
Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar will mentor 11 emerging players, including Parveez Rasool and Unmukt Chand, as part of an initiative by sports apparel company.
For the visitors, the game against the Mandeep Singh-led India 'A' side will be more about getting into the match simulation mode before they get going against Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team in the opening T20 International at Dharamsala on October 2.
Veterans Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir's prospects of making an India comeback are all but over as the celebrated opening duo stayed away from selection in the 15-member North Zone squad for the Deodhar Trophy.
This was Mumbai's second successive win after they had beaten Delhi in the lung-opener.
The 11th edition of the Indian Premier League will commence, on Saturday, April 7 and will end on 27th May
To match or even surpass the Royals, KKR have the biggest stars in Andre Russell to go along with reigning World Cup winning English skipper Eoin Morgan
Kolkata Knight Riders beat Kings XI Punjab by one wicket in the Indian Premier League match at Eden Gardens.
A round-up of Ranji matches played on Thursday.
In an act of gamesmanship, pacers, right-arm quick Harshit Rana (1/27 in 3 overs) and left-arm seamer Kuldip Yadav (2/27 in 3 overs) also wasted time, either faking cramps or tying shoelaces or not delivering the ball even after completing the action.
RR have a lot of issues to sort out, particularly in the absence of key foreign players like Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes.
Three-time champion Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals would look to build on their first wins and gain momentum when they clash in the Indian Premier League in Mumbai on Monday.
Kings XI Punjab will look to go all guns blazing against down and out Gujarat Lions in Mohali.
Punjab are lying at the bottom of the table with only one win from six matches, while the in-form Lions are the top of the IPL standings with six wins from seven matches.
Fast bowler Umesh Yadav claimed four wickets on his comeback, while captain Gautam Gambhir stroked an unbeaten half-century as Kolkata Knight Riders outclassed Kings XI Punjab by eight wickets.
The best-case scenario for RR would be Kings XI Punjab losing their last match and Sunrisers Hyderabad winning no more than one in their last two outings.
It has been a dramatic turnaround for the KL Rahul-led side after a string a losses earlier in the tournament.
IMAGES from the IPL match played between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore in Hyderabad on Monday
Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals have failed to live up to expectations in the IPL so far and are placed sixth and seventh respectively on the points table in the eight-team competition.
The dew factor will go out of the window but the searing heat will be an issue when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on a better prepared Rajasthan Royals in the first of the 10 IPL double-headers, in Abu Dhabi, on Saturday.
Kings XI Punjab beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 22 runs in a rain-truncated Indian Premier League game in Mohali.
Zaheer Khan made an impressive comeback from a year-long hiatus complementing Nathan Coulter-Nile brilliantly as Delhi Daredevils spanked Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets in an Indian Premier League match on Friday.
A play-offs spot having sealed after a resounding victory in their previous match, Kolkata Knight Riders would aim for a top-two finish with a win when they take on an inconsistent Kings XI Punjab in an IPL match, in Mohali, on Tuesday.
Even as they struggle to find the winning formula, laggards Kings XI Punjab will still fancy their chances when they host Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League cricket tournament in Mohali on Monday.
They endured a disastrous run the last time around to finish at the bottom of the heap and Kings XI Punjab would be aiming to make amends this season when they begin their campaign against newbies Gujarat Lions in their IPL opener in Mohali on Monday. Kings XI Punjab did not make any big buys this year and have a new captain in South African David Miller in place of Australian George Bailey who was released after leading the side to the last place in the previous season. Virender Sehwag has also retired and he will serve as team mentor this season. The Preity Zinta-owned side continues to lack the team balance as it has not added any significant player, only snapping the likes of all-rounders Farhaan Behardien and Marcus Stoinis, seamer Mohit Sharma and left-arm spinner Swapnil Singh. Last season, their batsmen lacked consistency and whenever they did well, the bowlers let the side down. On the other hand, debutants Gujarat Lions have a balanced side with top-class performers in both batting and bowling. They have explosive batsmen in Brendon McCullum, captain Suresh Raina, Aaron Finch and a plenty of top-notch all-rounders in Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja and James Faulkner.
KKR will head to the game with the belief that the side can win from any situation, which they have demonstrated time and again.
England batter Liam Livingstone fetched a staggering Rs 11.50 crore deal from Punjab Kings, who also roped in West Indies fast bowler Odean Smith, for Rs 6 crore, on Sunday, Day 2 of the TATA Indian Premier League 2022 Player Auction, in Bengaluru.
Table-toppers Mumbai Indians are on course to make it to the play-offs but the game is crucial for Rajasthan, who are languishing in seventh place. Defeat would mean a step closer to elimination.
The Virat Kohli-led RCB has won five of its eight games on the back of all-round performances but seemingly blundered in the eight-wicket defeat to laggards KXIP on Thursday.
Bolstered by the arrival of Ben Stokes, Rajasthan Royals will hope for a better showing from its misfiring top order as they try to settle scores against second-placed Delhi Capitals in their return leg IPL match, in Dubai, on Wednesday.
Rajasthan Royals, struggling at the penultimate spot on the points table after two wins and four straight defeats, need something special against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Sunday's IPL match in Dubai.
Rajasthan will take inspiration from their two big wins in Sharjah, to turn things around against a dominant Delhi.
Domestic giants Mumbai crashed out of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy after suffering their third straight defeat
Rajasthan Royals may need to rejig their Indian line-up slightly when they try to pull their IPL campaign out of the current rot against a supremely confident Mumbai Indians,
Delhi Daredevils' final IPL outing was as woeful as their opening one, with table-toppers Kings XI Punjab inflicting a seven-wicket defeat on the tournament's wooden spooners in Mohali on Sunday.
David Warner blasted a quickfire half-century before Sunrisers Hyderabad survived a sensational onslaught from David Miller to register a thrilling five-run victory against Kings XI Punjab and keep themselves in the hunt for a place in the play-offs of the Indian Premier League, in Hyderabad, on Monday.
Perennial under-achievers Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab will look to recover from opening losses and put their campaign back on track.