IPL 2026: Rajasthan Royals' strongest predicted XI against Punjab Kings

Rajasthan Royals will look to be the first team to beat the Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 when they face Shreyas Iyer and Co. at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on Tuesday, April 28.

The Royals had a brilliant start to the season as they won four games in a row. However, in the last four games, they managed to win only on. In their most recent clash, they lost to the Sunrisers Hyderabad by five wickets, failing to defend a 229-run target.

Punjab Kings, meanwhile, have six wins from seven games and are sitting pretty at the top of the table. They pulled off a record run chase in the last game against Delhi Capitals. Fifties from Prabhsimran Singh and Shreyas Iyer helped them chase down a 265-run target.

Here is Rajasthan Royals' strongest predicted XI vs Punjab Kings

Top Order: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (IMP), Dhruv Jurel (WK)

Yashasvi Jaiswal has scored 255 runs in eight innings in IPL 2026, averaging 42.50 and striking at 153.62. He has happily played second fiddle to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, allowing the 15-year-old to play his natural game. Talking about Sooryavanshi, the Bihar batter needs 24 runs on Tuesday to reclaim the Orange Cap. So far, he has 357 runs in eight innings and his strike rate is a mind-boggling 234.87. Dhruv Jurel, on the other hand, has also fared nicely with 232 runs in eight innings at an average of 33.14 and a strike rate of 163.19.

Middle Order: Riyan Parag (C), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja

Riyan Parag has not been able to justify his potential and the trust shown by the management in his skills. Whether the pressure of captaincy has gotten to him or not is up for debate but the 24-year-old needs to get his act together with the business end of the tournament fast approaching. Shimron Hetmyer entered the tournament on the back of some fine form but he has only managed 72 runs in six innings, averaging 14.40. Donovan Ferreira, however, has looked in decent touch, especially during the 16-ball 33 he scored in the last game. Ravindra Jadeja has made some important contributions with bat and ball. He has only been dismissed twice in six innings and has six wickets to his name at an economy rate of just seven.

Bowlers: Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi

Jofra Archer has made a habit of picking up a wicket on the first ball of his spell. He has dismissed three batters on the first ball of three matches. Archer has looked in fine rhythm and will be the bowler to watch out for on Tuesday. Tushar Deshpande is an experienced death bowler who defended 11 runs in the last over of a game against the Gujarat Titans earlier this season. Nandre Burger has shared the new ball with Archer and bowled some fabulous spells. He has eight wickets from as many games. Brijesh Sharma has been very impressive in his debut season in the IPL. He bowls some great yorkers and has a few variations of the slower ball up his sleeve. Ravi Bishnoi has picked up 11 wickets in eight games so far. He is averaging 20.82.

RR predicted XI against PBKS for match 40:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Riyan Parag (C), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi

Impact Player: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi