Rajasthan Royals (RR) look to clinch their playoff berth as they host a desperate Delhi Capitals (DC) in Match 43 of IPL 2026 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium this Friday, May 1. RR vs DC head-to-head shows how tight this rivalry is. We dive into the Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals stats, timeline, pitch report, playing11, and prediction for the playoff race.
The high-flying Rajasthan Royals look to secure their playoff spot against a struggling Delhi Capitals side on Friday, May 1, at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.
There are mismatches in the IPL, and then there is this. The Royals walk into Match 43 riding six wins from nine outings, led by teenage phenomenon Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who just smashed a historic 103 off 37 balls on this very ground.
Conversely, the Capitals arrive carrying the weight of a 75 all-out horror show against RCB—a side sitting 7th on the table and staring at elimination.
When Riyan Parag leads his pink army onto the Jaipur turf, the gap between these teams will be impossible to ignore. Yet, cricket defies logic. Delhi still leans on KL Rahul, the tournament’s most dangerous accumulator, and a pace battery capable of tearing through top orders.
This contrast between RR’s surging confidence and DC’s survival instinct makes the Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals clash the defining match of the week. In Jaipur, on a flat pitch under floodlights, tournaments are either defined or destroyed.
Where to Watch Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals Match
| Match | Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals |
| Stadiums | Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur |
| Date & Time | Friday, May 1, 07:30 P.M. (IST) |
| Live Streaming | Jio Hotstar |
RR vs DC Head to Head Records
| Matches | 30 |
| RR Won | 15 |
| DC Won | 15 |
| Tie | Nil |
| No Results | Nil |
| At Sawai Mansingh Stadium | RR 5, DC 2 |
| At Arun Jaitley Stadium | RR 4, DC 7 |
| Neutral Stadium | RR 6, DC 6 |
Pitch report
The Sawai Mansingh Stadium holds only 24,000 spectators, making it one of the most intimate and electric IPL venues in India. For this match, it matters beyond the atmosphere.
The surface here is batting-friendly across both innings, but the first 3-4 overs offer meaningful seam movement. That window is precisely where Jofra Archer becomes dangerous. Once that window closes, the ball skids onto the bat, boundaries flow, and batters who can rotate quickly through the middle overs dominate.
Dew becomes a minor factor only very late in the second innings in early May, so spinners retain effectiveness through overs 7-15. Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi (or Yash Raj Punja) will both look to exploit the middle phase.
Scores of 190 and above are now standard here in IPL 2026 — SRH posted 229 batting first at this venue on April 25, though they ultimately lost the match.
Weather Report
Friday is shaping up to be a little bit cloudy in Jaipur. Expect mostly overcast skies with temperatures around 31-36°C in the evening. However, it won’t be all cool breezes. The day will see a rise in humidity, reaching up to 27%. Thankfully, there will be some relief with moderate winds expected to blow around 11 km/h.
RR vs DC Playing11 (Probable)
Rajasthan Royals
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel, (WK), Riyan Parag(C), Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka / Shimron Hetmyer, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Punja / Ravi Bishnoi
Impact Player – Shubham Dubey / Sandeep Sharma
Delhi Capitals
KL Rahul (WK), Sahil Parekh / Abishek Porel, Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (C), David Miller, Kyle Jamieson / Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar / Dushmantha Chameera, T Natarajan
Impact Player- Ashutosh Sharma / Vipraj Nigam / Auqib Nabi /Pathum Nissanka
Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals Timeline (Last 10 Rivalries)
| Date | Venue | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Apr 2025 | Delhi | Delhi Capitals | Super Over |
| 07 May 2024 | Delhi | Delhi Capitals | 20 runs |
| 28 Mar 2024 | Jaipur | Rajasthan Royals | 12 runs |
| 08 Apr 2023 | Guwahati | Rajasthan Royals | 57 runs |
| 11 May 2022 | Navi Mumbai | Delhi Capitals | 8 wickets |
| 22 Apr 2022 | Mumbai | Rajasthan Royals | 15 runs |
| 25 Sep 2021 | Abu Dhabi | Delhi Capitals | 33 runs |
| 15 Apr 2021 | Mumbai | Rajasthan Royals | 3 wickets |
| 14 Oct 2020 | Dubai | Delhi Capitals | 13 runs |
| 09 Oct 2020 | Sharjah | Delhi Capitals | 46 runs |
Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals Stats
- KL Rahul has been dismissed by Jofra Archer only once in the IPL, scoring 89 runs at a strike rate of 151 against him.
- RR’s 105-run win in the 2008 semi-final remains the biggest margin of victory in this fixture.
- Rajasthan is significantly more impactful at home, winning 71% (5 out of 7) of their matches in Jaipur.
- Mukesh Kumar has dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal 2 times in IPL history.
- Despite the tied win-loss ratio, RR holds a slightly higher average score per game at 160.3 runs compared to DC’s 156.2 runs.
RR vs DC Prediction
RR is the favorite here, but calling it straightforward is a stretch if the toss goes Delhi’s way. That 64% chasing stat in Jaipur is a big deal. If DC bowls first and Mukesh Kumar snags an early wicket, the whole vibe changes.
Jaiswal and Sooryavanshi are a nightmare to bowl to, but they haven’t faced Kuldeep on a surface that actually grips yet. And while everyone is focused on DC’s 75 all-out collapse 4 days ago, those kinds of meltdowns often lead to a much tighter and more disciplined batting approach the next game. If KL Rahul anchors and keeps Archer at bay, this gets interesting.
RR has the depth and the home crowd, but if DC can drag this into the 19th over, the pressure in Jaipur is a different beast. It won’t be a 30-run blowout. It’ll be a scramble.
Predicted Winner: Rajasthan Royals
Predicted Margin: 5 to 10 runs or a last over chase.
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