3 player battles to watch out for in RR vs KKR, Match 6 of IPL 2025 ft. Jofra Archer

Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are gearing up for their respective second outings at the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL). The two sides will take on each other at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday, March 26.

Both sides will be looking for a win, having lost their respective campaign openers. While KKR lost the curtain raiser to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), RR faced a defeat against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in a high-scoring, record-shattering game.

The 2024 champions will be pumped up to get back on track to defend their title this season, while the Men in Pink would hope for Riyan Parag to lead the side well in Sanju Samson’s absence from the role.

On that note, here’s looking at three player battles to watch out for in the upcoming sixth match of the IPL 2025:

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#3 Ajinkya Rahane vs Maheesh Theekshana

KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane, a top-order batter on the side, will face his former teammate Maheesh Theekshana. The two cricketers shared the dressing room during their stint with the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and won the IPL title together in 2023.

Now going up against each other, RR’s new-ball bowler will aim to dismiss his former teammate inside the powerplay. Rahane has struggled against spin of late, and if the conditions on offer suit Theekshana, it’ll be interesting to see the Sri Lankan’s game plan to tackle the Indian cricketer.

Rahane scored a 31-ball 56 in KKR's opening match, while Theekshana registered figures of 2/52 against SRH.

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#2 Shimron Hetmyer vs Varun Chakaravarthy

RR hitter Shimron Hetmyer will walk in to bat in the middle order, where KKR will likely hand over the bowling charge to Varun Chakaravarthy.

Having faced each other in three innings, Chakaravarthy has dismissed Hetmyer twice in seven deliveries, leaking just seven runs against him. The Caribbean batter has not managed to score a single boundary against the KKR spinner.

The mystery spinner has done well against the West Indian previously, and it’ll be a battle worth watching.

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#1 Quinton de Kock vs Jofra Archer

KKR’s Quinton de Kock has a good record against RR pacer Jofra Archer in T20s. While Archer doesn’t have much experience playing in the Indian T20 league, De Kock has been a regular in the tournament, having represented various franchises.

In 52 deliveries of nine innings, QDK has scored 100 runs against Archer at a brilliant strike rate of 192.30, hitting nine fours and seven sixes off him.

The numbers might not do justice to the Englishman’s performances but he has dismissed the Proteas batter thrice in these outings, making it a mouthwatering battle.