Rajasthan Royals Choose to Bat First Against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2026
Rajasthan Royals Opt to Bat First
In the IPL 2026 match held at Eden Gardens on Sunday, Rajasthan Royals (RR) won the toss and decided to bat first against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). RR's captain, Riyan Parag, noted that the pitch appeared dry, suggesting it might provide some turn initially but remain consistent throughout the game. He stressed the importance of starting strong, reflecting on lessons learned from their last match, and aimed for improved performance. Parag also announced the return of Shimron Hetmyer and Brijesh Sharma to the playing eleven. 'We're batting first. The wicket looks quite dry; the grass was trimmed yesterday. It might turn in the first innings and stay the same later. We need to set the tone early; our focus is on improving, as the last match was a learning experience. Hetmyer and Brijesh are back,' he stated.
KKR is still seeking their first win of the IPL 2026 season, being the only team without a victory so far. They have suffered five losses out of six matches, with one game resulting in no result due to rain. Their last outing ended in a five-wicket defeat against the Gujarat Titans.
Conversely, the Rajasthan Royals are looking to recover after their initial loss of the season against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Currently, they sit in third place in the standings, boasting four wins and one loss.
Playing XI for RR vs KKR in IPL 2026
Rajasthan Royals
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi.
Impact Subs: Sandeep Sharma, Shubham Dubey, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Yash Punja.
Kolkata Knight Riders
Ajinkya Rahane(c), Tim Seifert(w), Cameron Green, Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Impact Subs: Manish Pandey, Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Tejasvi Singh, Navdeep Saini.