RR vs LSG Live Score: Stoinis gets rid of Buttler, Yashasvi, Samson ...

Naveen-ul-Haq is back in the attack and he concedes five runs in his over as the required rate climbs up.

Avesh Khan is then reintroduced and he does the job for KL Rahul and gets rid of Shimron Hetmyer for 2(5). Three runs and a wicket come in his over as RR reach 107/4 in 16 overs.

Marcus Stoinis picks his second wicket as he removes Jos Buttler for 40(41). The opener tries to clear the mid-wicket but fails to find the proper connection and is caught by Ravi Bishnoi in the deep. 

Shimron Hetmyer joins proceedings. RR: 99/3 (14 overs) | need 56 runs in 36 balls 

A mix-up between Buttler and Samson results in a wicket. Samson departs for 2(4) as Devdutt Padikkal arrives in the middle. 

Meanwhile, Bishnoi concedes six runs in his over as RR move to 95/2 in 13 overs. They need 60 runs in 42 balls.

Marcus Stoinis is welcomed with a six by Yashasvi Jaiswal, who connects a full delivery over the mid-wicket fence for a maximum. Stoinis then provides LSG with the first breakthrough as Yashasvi plays it straight to Avesh Khan at short third-man, who makes no mistake. He falls for 44(35).

Sanju Samson is the new batter in. RR: 88/1 (12 overs)

Amit Mishra comes to bowl his second over and he is welcomed with a boundary by Jos Buttler. Reverse sweeps another fulltoss, finds the gap and it races away for a four. 

Eight runs come off the over as RR move to 81/0 in 11 overs. They now require 74 runs in 54 balls

Lucknow introduce Amit Mishra as Impact Substitute as Kyle Mayers makes way for the spinner. 

He starts with a single against Yashasvi, before Buttler plays a dot and reverse sweeps a fulltoss for a boundary. He then passes the strike to Yashasvi in the next ball, who does the same in the fifth delivery.

Buttler finishes the over with another single as 8 runs come off the over. RR: 68/0 (9 overs) 

Ravi Bishnoi is brought into the attack and Yashasvi Jaiswal starts the over with a single. The next delivery is punched away for a four and here comes the siren for a no-ball. The free-hit only results in a single as a brilliant piece of fielding by Marcus Stoinis at long-off saves the powerful hit by Buttler from reaching the fence.

There is a loud LBW appeal against Jaiswal in the next ball and Bishnoi convinces KL Rahul to take a review, but TV replay confirms the ball was pitched outside leg. RR: 60/0 (8 overs)

Avesh Khan comes to bowl his second over and is hit for consecutive boundaries by Yashasvi Jaiswal. The first one is driven between mid-off and extra cover, but the second one could have resulted in a wicket.

Jaiswal opens his bat against a length ball by Avesh as the ball goes straight to Naveen-ul-Haq at short third-man, however, he fails to collect it as the ball races for another four. He is dropped on 22. 

Buttler then finishes the over with another boundary as Rajasthan accumulate 47 runs at the end of powerplay.

Yudhvir Singh comes into the attack and he starts off with a boundary, not the bowler's fault actually. He bowls a length ball, which is punched straight towards Kyle Mayers at point by Yashasvi Jaiswal. The fielder fails to stop the ball as it rolls between his legs for a boundary. 

Yudhvir then bowls it full and straight, which is driven towards him by Jaiswal as the bowler stops it with a brilliant piece of fielding on his followthrough. However, he hurts himself in the process, looks like an ankle twist but the bowler continues. 

Jos Buttler then connects a full delivery by the pacer for a 112m SIX over deep mid-wicket. RR: 34/0 (5 overs)

Yudhvir Singh will share the new ball with Naveen-ul-Haq. 

He starts with a dot but gifts five runs in the next delivery. Bowls way down the leg-stump as the ball beats the keeper and races for a four. 

Jaiswal then finishes the over with a boundary and a maximum as RR move to 18/0 after the end of two overs.

Naveen-ul-Haq starts off with a loud LBW appeal against Yashasvi Jaiswal but the umpire isn't interested. Pooran convinces KL Rahul to take the review, but UltraEdge confirms there was a faint inside edge. 

Just two singles come off the first over. RR: 2/0 (1 over)

Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal arrive in the middle to start the 155-run chase. 

Naveen-ul-Haq leads the attack for Lucknow.

After conceding three runs in the first two deliveries, Sandeep Sharma strikes in the third ball as Marcus Stoinis is caught-behind for 21(16). 

Krunal Pandya walks in and opens his account with a boundary. He however fails to make a connection in the next ball and tries to steal a single but Brilliant glovework by Sanju Samson gets rid of Nicholas Pooran. He knocks the stumps with a direct hit as Pooran falls for 28(20). 

The final ball also results in a run-out as Yudhvir Singh and Pandya look for a double in the final ball. However, they manage just one run as Hetmyer and Samson combine to inflict an easy run-out. 

Eight runs come off the over as LSG post 154/7 in 20 overs.

Jason Holder comes to bowl the penultimate over as he is welcomed with a SIX by Nicholas Pooran, who whacks a length ball on the pads over the fence on the on-side. 

Holder misses his line in the next ball and ends up bowling way down the leg side and full. Pooran gets some bat on it and it travels for a boundary towards the fine leg region.

The third ball is a dot but he once again misses his length and ends up bowling a fulltoss, wide of off-stump. Pooran opens the face of his bat and slices it for a four over backward point. LSG: 146/4 (19 overs)

Ashwin strikes twice in the same over as he cleans up Kyle Mayers for 51(42). 

Chahal, who has been a bit expensive tonight, comes to bowl his final over and does a decent job despite powerhitters Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran batting in the middle. He concedes five runs in the over as LSG reach 109/4 in 15 overs. Chahal: 4-0-41-0

Trent Boult comes to bowl his final over and he is finally rewarded with a wicket. Ayush Badoni tries to be innovative and tries to scoop Boult towards fine leg. However he gets an edge, which then knocks the stumps. He falls for 1(4).

Yuzvendra Chahal is brought into the attack in the next over and Kyle Mayers hits the spinner for consecutive fours and then completes his half-century with a single. Takes 40 deliveries to reach the milestone. LSG 98-2 (13 overs)

A change of end for Jason Holder as he replaces Yuzvendra Chahal, who had conceded 18 runs in his previous over. 

The tall bowler concedes three singles in his first three balls before providing Rajasthan with the first breakthrough in the fourth delivery. Pitches it full and KL Rahul goes for the aerial route. However, his shot finds Jos Buttler at long-on as he falls for 39(32). 

Ayush Badoni is the new batter in. LSG: 83/1 (11 overs)

Ashwin is back into the attack and KL Rahul starts the over with a single. Mayers then plays a dot, and the next delivery it pitched way outside the off-stump, which is signaled wide by the umpire. He then rotates the strike in the third ball, before Rahul does the same in the next. 

Mayers then plays a dot and then gets a single in the final ball. LSG: 79/0 (10 overs)

Yuzvendra Chahal continues from his end and is welcomed by Kyle Mayers with a huge SIX. Steps down and picks up the flighted ball as he sends it over the long-off fence. 

The second ball also results in a four after an under edge off Mayers' bat beats the keeper and races for a four. 

Rahul too joins the party and hits the spinner for a maximum over mid-wicket. The ball travels 103m. LSG: 74/0 (9 overs) | KL Rahul 36(28), Kyle Mayers 35(27)

Another bowling change as Jason Holder comes into the attack. As he struggles to time the ball, he hits a length ball by Holder for a maximum. Makes room for his himself and knocks the ball over the long-off fence for a SIX and rotates the strike in the next ball. 

KL Rahul then finishes the over with a four as the ball bounces just before the fence towards the mid-wicket region. LSG: 56/0 (8 overs)

R Ashwin is introduced in the final over of powerplay and he starts with six runs. 

Meanwhile, there was a run-out appeal against Kyle Mayers in the first ball, who was running towards the non-striker's end. However, TV replay confirms that Ashwin had already knocked the bails with his hands before collecting the ball. LSG: 37/0 (6 overs)

Kyle Mayers hit Trent Boult for a SIX. He picks up the full delivery this time and lofts it over cover for a flat six.

Rahul then gets an outside edge later in the over, which goes wide of the wicketkeeper and races for a boundary.

Rahul then tries to loft the final delivery by Boult towards long-off but fails to time it. The ball flies in the air as Jason Holder chases after it, completes his ground but fails to hold onto it and it results in a double. He is now dropped on 12. LSG: 31/0 (5 overs)

Sandeep Sharma shares the new ball with Boult. He too starts with a dot against Kyle Mayers, before a thick edge helps the ball travel towards the third-man region for a four. Fortunate for the batter as it lands right in front of Boult, who did make an attempt to catch the ball.

Sandeep then bowls a no-ball but Mayers fail to make any use of the freehit before he rotates the strike in the fourth ball. LSG: 6/0 (1.4 overs)

Bout starts tight as he beats the outside edge of KL Rahul in the first ball as the ball settles in Samson's gloves. The next two balls is knocked down towards the fielder on the off-side. 

Good start by Boult. LSG: 0/0 (0.3 over)

Lucknow Super Giants: Amit Mishra, Jaydev Unadkat, Krishnappa Gowtham, Prerak Mankad, Daniel Sams

Rajasthan Royals: Devdutt Padikkal, Murugan Ashwin, Donavon Ferreira, Navdeep Saini, Joe Root

Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson(w/c), Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal

Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul(c), Kyle Mayers, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya, Nicholas Pooran(w), Ayush Badoni, Naveen-ul-Haq, Avesh Khan, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Ravi Bishnoi

Yuzvendra Chahal, who have been substituted twice in five matches, believes Rajasthan have made great use of the new Impact Player rule.

"It has worked in our favour given the way Dhruv (Jurel) and Dev (Devdutt Padikkal) have batted. It is a plus point because I am of no use with the bat. It helps when you are chasing a big total and an extra batter gets added, which is a plus point," said Chahal at the pre-match presser.

If we shift our focus to Rajasthan Royals bowling department, they have the best spinners in their rank in the form of R Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal.

The availability of Adam Zampa gives them a cushion to field third specialist spinner.

Meanwhile, the seam department is spearheaded by Trent Boult, who has found great support from IPL veteran Sandeep Sharma.

The spinners had won them the match against Chennai Super Kings, which saw Sandeep defend seven runs in the final three balls with MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja batting in the middle. 

Meanwhile, Boult had played a key role in their resounding win against Delhi Capitals.

However, the challenge for Lucknow is nothing less than an uphill climb. Rajasthan Royals have a formidable top-order consisting Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson.

Buttler has scored 204 runs is their leading run-scorer, Jaiswal too has struck at a strike-rate of 150. He has scored 136 runs so far in the tournament. 

However, the last encounter against Gujarat saw both the batters fai but Samson then stood up to the task. He scored a 32-ball 60, while West Indies power-hitter Shimron Hetmyer finished the job for the Royals with an unbeaten 56 off 26 balls.

If we look at Lucknow's bowling option, they look pretty much sorted at the moment. Mark Wood and Avesh Khan possess enough pace to trouble the opposition.

Yudhvir Singh Charak, who made a sensational debut in the previous encounter, is likely to remain in the playing XI.

If we look at slow bowling option, one name that cannot be overlooked is Ravi Bishnoi. The spinner has been exceptional as Lucknow appears to have one of the strongest bowling unit at the moment.

With Deepak Hooda struggling for runs, the thinktank can even think of replacing him with Krishnappa Gowtham in the XI. Hooda has just managed 37 runs from the five previous outings.

Gowtham can be good addition as he can make important contributions in both the departments. 

If we look at Lucknow's batting, they have an abundance of powerhitters, who straightaway walk into the playing XI.

Kyle Mayers leads the charge at top, but it's time he should start converting those good starts into a big score.

If we move slightly down, LSG have the services of Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran, who are capable of pulverising any opposition.

In the match against RCB, when Lucknow chased down a gigantic 213, Stoinis had scored 65 off 30 balls, while Pooran had smoked 62 off 19 balls.

Ayush Badoni also holds the reputation of knocking some big sixes towards the closing stages of the innings.

Lucknow endured a two-wicket defeat against Punjab Kings in the previous encounter as Punjab completed the moderate 160-run chase with three balls to spare.

If we look at the proceedings, Lucknow got off to a decent start but failed to gather enough runs in the middle overs, which cost them the match. 

However, there was one positive as Lucknow skipper KL Rahul returned to form and scored 74 in his 56-ball stay in the middle.

LSG will hope for an all-round show and look to return to winning ways, when they face Rajasthan later in the evening. The team have secured three wins from five encounters and are placed second on the table.

A win will take them to level terms with Rajasthan, who have eight points, two more than Lucknow, after playing the same number of matches.

Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul, Krunal Pandya, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Krishnappa Gowtham, Jaydev Unadkat, Mark Wood, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan.    

Complete squad: KL Rahul (c and wk), Kyle Mayers, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Amit Mishra, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Naveen ul Haq, Ayush Badoni, Avesh Khan, Karan Sharma, Yudhvir Charak, Yash Thakur, Romario Shepherd, Mark Wood, Swapnil Singh, Manan Vohra, Daniel Sams, Prerak Mankad, Krishnappa Gowtham, Jaydev Unadkat, Marcus Stoinis, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav.

Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ashwin, Jason Holder, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal   

Complete squad: Sanju Samson (c), Abdul Basith, Murugan Ashwin, Ravichandran Ashwin, KM Asif, Trent Boult, Jos Buttler, KC Cariappa, Yuzvendra Chahal, Donovan Ferreira, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Obed McCoy, Devdutt Padikkal, Riyan Parag, Kunal Singh Rathore, Joe Root, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Kuldeep Sen, Akash Vasisht, Kuldip Yadav, Adam Zampa.