Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Riyan Parag has won the toss and elected to field first in tonight's IPL 2026 encounter against the league-leading Punjab Kings (PBKS). The decision, taken at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA Stadium, follows a tournament-wide trend where captains have preferred to chase on Mullanpur's batting-friendly surface. You can follow Punjab Kings vs Rajasthan Royals match scorecard here.

Punjab Kings, who remain the only unbeaten side in the competition with 13 points, will look to set a formidable total as they bat first for the first time in three matches.

Team News and Key Changes

Both teams have made tactical adjustments to their starting lineups to account for the conditions and recent form.

• Punjab Kings: Shreyas Iyer has made two notable changes to the side that successfully chased 265 against Delhi Capitals. Suryansh Shedge replaces Shashank Singh in the middle order, and the express pace of Lockie Ferguson has been drafted into the bowling unit to exploit the true bounce of the Mullanpur track. PBKS vs RR Live Streaming Online and Free Telecast, IPL 2026.

• Rajasthan Royals: Riyan Parag has reinforced his squad following back-to-back losses. Dasun Shanaka makes his debut for the Royals, providing an extra all-round option, while Yash Raj Punja also makes his way into the XI. Notably, Shimron Hetmyer and Ravi Bishnoi have been moved to the substitutes' bench, likely to be used as Impact Players later in the game.

  PBKS vs RR Confirmed Playing XIs

Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Cooper Connolly, Suryansh Shedge, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Rajasthan Royals: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Yash Raj Punja.

Impact Player Strategy

With Rajasthan bowling first, their strategy involves containing Punjab's explosive openers, Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh, before potentially introducing a batting powerhouse for the chase.

• Punjab Kings Subs: Vishnu Vinod, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Xavier Bartlett, Harpreet Brar, Musheer Khan.

• Rajasthan Royals Subs: Ravi Bishnoi, Ravi Singh, Tushar Deshpande, Shubham Dubey, Shimron Hetmyer.

  Pitch and Conditions

The Mullanpur pitch remains a "batter’s paradise" with an average first-innings score of 212 this season. While overcast skies were noted earlier in the evening, the toss proceeded without delay. The decision to bowl first is likely influenced by the potential for dew later in the night, which could make defending a total difficult for Punjab’s spinners, Yuzvendra Chahal and Marco Jansen.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 28, 2026 07:22 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).