Punjab Kings' batsman Nicholas Pooran on Monday said he is hoping to see Chris Gayle light up the Wankhede Stadium against the Rajasthan Royals.
Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson on Monday won the toss and opted to field first against Punjab Kings in game four of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here at the Wankhede Stadium.
"First of all, very happy to be back in India. Looking forward to a wonderful season for the Punjab Kings. All the players are ready and up for the challenge, we are excited to get our first game underway. I am looking to be myself and keep entertaining everyone," Pooran told host broadcaster Star Sports before the start of the game against Rajasthan Royals.
"We have to focus on the right things, if every player focuses on the things they need to, we will be okay. Chris Gayle is here, lets hope tonight he can bring on a storm and entertain everyone," he added.
At the time of the toss, RR skipper Samson said: "We are going to bowl first. We had challenges while picking the XI. Morris, Stokes, Buttler, and Fizz are our overseas players. Very excited about the role."
On the other hand, Rahul said: "We all know the history of Wankhede. Everyone wants to bowl first. But we would want to play good cricket. It is about the batting group helping the bowling group and vice-versa. We were really happy with the auctions. Meredith, Richardson, Gayle, and Pooran are our foreign players."
For Punjab Kings, there are three debutants as Riley Meredith, Jhye Richardson, and Shahrukh Khan have been named in the final playing XI. Universe Boss Chris Gayle handed the cap to Shahrukh.
On the other hand, there are four debutants for Rajasthan Royals as Manan Vohra, Shivam Dube, Mustafizur Rahman and Chetan Sakariya are playing their first match for the franchise.
Rajasthan Royals playing XI: Sanju Samson (c), Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Shivam Dube, Manan Vohra, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Chris Morris, Shreyas Gopal, Chetan Sakariya, Mustafizur Rahman.
Punjab Kings playing XI: KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Shahrukh Khan, Jhye Richardson, Murugan Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Riley Meredith, Arshdeep Singh.
( With inputs from ANI )
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