Jaipur, May 18 (IANS) Both Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings players lined up for the Indian national anthem to pay tribute to the Indian armed forces ahead of their IPL 2025 clash at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, here on Sunday.

The RR-PBKS clash is the first proper match to happen after the resumption of the IPL 2025 on Saturday, following a one-week suspension due to the cross-border tensions with Pakistan. The Saturday clash between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders was washed out due to rain in Bengaluru without a toss, fading away the excitement of the IPL restart.

In a tribute to the Indian armed forces, who displayed their impeccable valour to protect the countrymen from the enemy, players sang the national anthem together to honour their valuable contributions before the start of the match. “Thank you armed forces” was the message being displayed on the screens of the stadium when the Indian national anthem was played.

During the toss, Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer thanked the Indian armed forces for safeguarding the borders of the country amid tensions with Pakistan.

“Kudos to the Army forces who have worked for the country and made sure that we’re in a comfortable position,” he said during the toss after electing to bat first.

Mitchell Owen, Marco Jansen and Azmatullah Omarzai are the three overseas players featuring for PBKS.

For Rajasthan Royals, a fully fit Sanju Samson returned to captain the side, replacing Nitish Rana in the playing XI. Kwena Maphaka came in for Jofra Archer.

Playing XIs

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Sanju Samson(w/c), Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kwena Maphaka, Tushar Deshpande, Akash Madhwal, Fazalhaq Farooqi.

Impact Substitutes: Kumar Kartikeya, Shubham Dubey, Ashok Sharma, Kunal Singh Rathore, Yudhvir Singh Charak.

Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Shashank Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Mitchell Owen, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Impact Substitutes: Vijaykumar Vyshak, Harpreet Brar, Praveen Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Musheer Khan.

Punjab Kings are placed in third spot with 15 points in 11 games and are poised to finish in top two spots if they win their three matches including this match against already eliminated Rajasthan Royals.

–IANS

ab/bc