"Chennai boy vs Chennai, so I am going with Ravichandran Ashwin" - Aakash Chopra on Rajasthan Royals players to watch out for in IPL 2024 clash vs CSK

Aakash Chopra expects Rajasthan Royals (RR) spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to excel in his side's IPL 2024 clash against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The Chennai-born veteran bowler will be up against his former side at Chepauk, his home ground, in the first game on Sunday, May 12.

With 16 points from 11 games, RR are placed second on the points table. A win against CSK will help them join the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on 18 points and become the second team to qualify for the playoffs.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra chose Ashwin as the Rajasthan Royals bowler to watch out for in Sunday's game.

"Let's go towards Ravichandran Ashwin. I will tell you why. He picked up three wickets in the last match. He was the only bowler who was bowling well. He also dismissed Jake Fraser-McGurk," he reasoned (11:30).

"Here, you might get Rachin (Ravindra) at the start and then Moeen (Ali), and after that, Ravindra Jadeja and probably Mitchell Santner, and he is a Chennai boy. Chennai boy vs Chennai, so I am going with Ravichandran Ashwin for this one," the former India opener added.

Ashwin has picked up five wickets at an economy rate of 8.69 in 10 games in IPL 2024. The wily off-spinner registered figures of 3/24 in four overs in the Rajasthan Royals' previous game against the Delhi Capitals (DC).

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"He is batting really well" - Aakash Chopra on Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson

Sanju Samson is RR's highest run-scorer in IPL 2024. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra picked Sanju Samson as the first Rajasthan Royals batter in focus against the Chennai Super Kings.

"Since it's a day game, I am not going towards Jos Buttler as they might make a very slow pitch, or else Jos Buttler is boss Buttler. He hits a lot. Sanju Samson - he scored runs in the last match. Can we expect runs from him in this match as well? You can expect that. He is batting really well," he said (10:05).

"Very few players, who have been selected in the Indian team for the World Cup, are still doing well but he is one of them. So Sanju Samson is an important player, and his captaincy - he has been doing really well as well," the former KKR player added.

Chopra chose Riyan Parag as the second Rajasthan Royals batter to watch out for in Sunday's afternoon game.

"In this match, I am thinking whether Riyan Parag could be that second player because it will be a slightly spin-friendly pitch. So Jos Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer might not like the pitch that much. Shimron didn't even play the last match. Rovman Powell might get stuck on a slow pitch. So maybe it's Riyan Parag's night," he explained.

"He was batting well in the last match as well but one thing has been seen. The graph was going upwards at the start but has plateaued a little. It has to start going up again. So I am thinking Riyan Parag - why not in this game?" the cricketer-turned-commentator added.

With 436 runs at a strike rate of 156.27 in 10 innings, Parag is the Royals' second-highest run-getter in IPL 2024. Only Samson (471) has scored more runs for the franchise this season.