Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson won the toss and elected to bowl first against Lucknow Super Giants in a top of the table clash of the IPL 2023 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, here on Wednesday.
It is also the first time Jaipur will be hosting an IPL match after three years, 11 months and 22 days.
Rajasthan, the table-toppers, enter Wednesday's match on the back of beating Gujarat Titans by three wickets in Ahmedabad while second-ranked Lucknow arrive after losing to Punjab Kings by two wickets at home.
After winning the toss, Samson said fast-bowling all-rounder Jason Holder comes into the playing eleven in place of leg-spinner Adam Zampa.
"It looks like a really good wicket. We are very happy to come back to Jaipur and play after 4 years. It's all about how we react under pressure. We have a fearless attitude," he said.
Lucknow captain KL Rahul said he would have bowled first as well while adding that Quinton de Kock continues to be out of the playing eleven.
"It's important that we start well and put a good total on the board. We've executed well in most games," said Rahul.
"We have had clarity with bat on ball. All three skills have been good. We are quite settled. We'll try to keep that left-hand, right-hand combination going," he added.
Playing XIs:
Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (captain & wicketkeeper), Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma and Yuzvendra Chahal
Substitutes: Devdutt Padikkal, Murugan Ashwin, Joe Root, Donovan Ferreira, Navdeep Saini
Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul (captain), Kyle Mayers, Nicholas Pooran (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya, Ayush Badoni, Yudhvir Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan and Naveen-ul-Haq
Substitutes: Jaydev Unadkat, Daniel Sams, K Gowtham, Prerak Mankad, Amit Mishra
