IPL 2026, RR vs CSK Toss Today Match: Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bowl against Chennai Super Kings in the third match of the Indian Premier League 2026 at Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Monday, March 30, 2026. Both teams are opening their campaigns in the 2026 season and will look to make an early impact.

RR captain Riyan Parag said early moisture on the surface after recent rain influenced the decision to bowl first. “There's been a lot of rain here actually. So even though it is a red soil wicket, it's going to be a little moisture. So we want to try and extract that in the first few overs and then see how we go back into the game. (On leading RR) It feels nice. It feels very overwhelming. I've been with this franchise for eight years now. And then seeing the transition that has happened from me being a 17-year-old to being here as captain, I feel the support has been incredible. All my peers have been really supportive and very helping towards me. So hopefully a good campaign for us. I think the goal is to win the championship. With the trades and the auction, I think what we've tried to do is have a lot of smart cricketers, a lot of all-rounders and people who have different skills, so that when we get conditions like this or a flat wicket in Mumbai or a green top in Kolkata, we can adapt and play accordingly. So that's the plan. Our four overseas are Nandre, Jofra, Donovan and Shimron Hetmyer,” Parag said.

Chennai captain Ruturaj Gaikwad said he would have preferred to bowl first as well, given the overcast conditions, but added his team would aim to start positively with the bat. “ It was a no-brainer to bowl first actually. The wicket has been under the covers for a long time now, with overcast conditions as well, so we would have loved to bowl first, but neverheless, we'll look to start positively. (On having a lot of youth in the squad) Well, it was not something which we decided at the start of the cycle, but you saw that how the last year really went for us. And that is how we thought we'll go into the auction with some strategy behind it, whatever options that are available, what are the best options that are available and buy them into the team and buy them into the culture and let's hope that they go really well. So that was the thought process behind it and hopefully it will work. Our overseas players are Matt Short, Jamie Overton, Noor and Matt Henry. We're going with seven batters to start with. Hopefully if we get a start well, maybe the impact sub will come on later,” Gaikwad said.

IPL 2026 RR vs CSK Playing XIs:

Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Ayush Mhatre, Matthew Short, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma(w), Jamie Overton, Noor Ahmad, Matt Henry, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed

Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Riyan Parag(c), Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma

Impact Substitutes:

Chennai Super Kings Impact subs: Sarfaraz Khan, Prashant Veer, Rahul Chahar, Gurjapneet Singh, Ramakrishna Ghosh

Rajasthan Royals Impact subs: Donovan Ferreira, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Sushant Mishra, Tushar Deshpande

Pitch Report

The surface at Barsapara Cricket Stadium is expected to offer a balanced contest, with weather likely to play a key role in the IPL 2026 clash between Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings.

According to analysts Deep Dasgupta and Daren Ganga, the pitch is a red-soil surface that traditionally offers good pace and consistent bounce.

The square boundaries measure around 61 meters and 70 meters, while the straight boundary extends to approximately 74 meters, suggesting a slight advantage for batters on one side.

However, persistent rain and overcast conditions in Guwahati have left moisture on both the pitch and outfield. This is expected to aid seam bowlers early in the match, especially with the new ball likely to grip and move.

Despite the assistance for pacers, the pitch is expected to remain true, with even pace and carry throughout the game. Batters who adjust quickly to the conditions could still capitalize once the surface settles.

Overall, the conditions point to early assistance for fast bowlers before evolving into a more balanced batting surface as the match progresses.