Nellai Royal Kings face Salem Spartans in Match 24 of the Tamil Nadu Premier League 2026 at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Thursday, August 20. The match starts at 7:30 PM IST. The current Cricbuzz match page confirms Chennai as the venue and 2:00 PM GMT as the start time.
Nellai enter this contest with three wins from five matches. They started with victories over Chepauk Super Gillies and Dindigul Dragons, lost to IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans and Trichy Grand Cholas, and then returned to winning ways with a two-wicket victory over VIDA Kovai Kings. Salem have had a much tougher campaign and have lost all five of their matches so far.
The head-to-head record strongly favours Nellai. The Royal Kings have won each of the five previous recorded meetings between these sides, including an eight-wicket victory in 2025.
NRK vs SS Match Details
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | Nellai Royal Kings vs Salem Spartans, 24th Match |
| Series | Tamil Nadu Premier League 2026 |
| Date | Thursday, 20 August 2026 |
| Time | 7:30 PM IST / 2:00 PM GMT |
| Venue | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai |
| Format | T20, 20 overs per side |
| Captains | Sonu Yadav (NRK), S Abishiek (SS) |
| Current Record | NRK: 3 wins, 2 losses; SS: 0 wins, 5 losses |
| Recent Form | NRK: W, W, L, L, W. SS: L, L, L, L, L |
| H2H | Five recent recorded meetings, NRK won all five |
The current Match 24 listing confirms the fixture, time, venue and squads. Sonu Yadav has captained Nellai during the 2026 campaign, while S Abishiek is listed as Salem’s captain in their recent match squad.
Dream11 Team for NRK vs SS, 24th Match
Top Picks for NRK vs SS, 24th Match
| Player | Team | Role | Key Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rithik Easwaran | NRK | C / WK-Batter | Strong captain pick after smashing 69 from 31 balls against Kovai. His innings included four fours and six sixes and played a major role in Nellai’s two-wicket victory. |
| S Abishiek | SS | VC / Batter | Salem’s captain comes into the match after scoring 38 from only 18 balls against Dindigul Dragons. He struck four fours and three sixes in that innings. |
| Sonu Yadav | NRK | All-Rounder | Gives fantasy value with both bat and ball. He was Player of the Match against Dindigul after taking three wickets and scoring 19 from six balls during Nellai’s successful chase. |
| Sachin Rathi | NRK | Bowler | Rathi has been in good wicket-taking form. He took 3/17 against Trichy and followed that with 2/30 against Kovai, giving him five wickets across those two games. |
| Rajendran Vivek | SS | All-Rounder | Vivek offers points in more than one department. Against Dindigul he took 3/22 from two overs, although he made only seven with the bat. |
| NS Harish | NRK | All-Rounder | A regular bowling option for Nellai. He took 2/37 against Trichy and bowled an economical 0/28 from four overs against Kovai. |
Hari Nishanth is another player worth considering. He made 36 from 28 balls against Trichy earlier in the tournament, although he was dismissed for nine in Salem’s most recent match.
U Mukilesh is a strong alternative outside the supplied team. He made 63 against Trichy and 26 in the successful chase against Kovai.
Pitch Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Venue | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai |
| Pitch Type | The Chennai surface can reward slower bowling, but the first two TNPL 2026 matches here have also shown that batters can score quickly once settled. |
| Recent Scoring | Match 21 produced 167 and 168/5. Match 22 produced 197/4 and 170/8 in a rain-reduced 19-over contest. |
| Pace vs Spin | Both styles have found success. Manimaran Siddharth took 2/24 in the first Chennai match, while seamers and all-rounders also picked up wickets. |
| Competitive Total | Around 170-180 should provide a competitive base if conditions remain dry. A good batting side can push closer to 190. |
| Toss Factor | There is a slight case for chasing, but the trend is not strong enough to make it automatic. |
VIDA Kovai Kings successfully chased 168 in 18.5 overs against Chepauk Super Gillies in the first Chennai match of the season. The next game saw Trichy make 197/4 from 19 overs and defend the DLS-adjusted contest against Dindigul.
Those two matches show that Chepauk has not behaved like an extremely slow, low-scoring surface during this stage of TNPL 2026. Batters who settle in can score quickly, but bowlers who vary their pace remain useful.
Weather Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Temperature | Conditions should remain in the low 30s around the start after a hot day in Chennai. |
| Sky | Partly cloudy conditions are expected through most of the match window. |
| Rain Chance | The current hourly forecast shows only around 13% precipitation probability from 7 PM through most of the match. |
| Pre-Match Weather | Some rain is possible during the afternoon, but the forecast improves significantly towards the evening. |
| Overall | A full match currently looks likely. Any afternoon rain could leave a little surface moisture, but the evening interruption risk is relatively low. |
The latest Chennai forecast has a daily high near 36°C, with occasional afternoon rain before conditions improve around the scheduled start.
NRK vs SS Toss Prediction
Bowling first gets a slight preference, although this is not a strong toss call.
VIDA Kovai Kings won the first Chennai match of TNPL 2026 while chasing, reaching 168/5 in 18.5 overs. Afternoon rain is also possible today before the forecast improves in the evening. That could encourage the toss winner to assess any remaining moisture before deciding.
If Sonu Yadav (Nellai Royal Kings) wins the toss, expect him to consider bowling first. Nellai have already shown confidence while chasing. They elected to bowl against Kovai in their previous match and successfully reached 163/8 with one ball remaining. Rithik Easwaran’s 69 was decisive.
If S Abishiek (Salem Spartans) wins the toss, bowling first would also be understandable. Salem chose to field against Dindigul in their previous game, although Dindigul punished the decision by scoring 239/6 in a rain-shortened 15-over contest. The Chennai conditions should be different, and Salem may again prefer a known target.
Injury and Team News
Nellai Royal Kings
Nellai Royal Kings have won three of their first five matches. They opened the season with a 50-run victory over Chepauk Super Gillies before successfully chasing 171 against Dindigul Dragons. They then lost consecutive matches against Tiruppur and Trichy before beating Kovai Kings by two wickets.
Their latest victory was built around Rithik Easwaran’s 69 from 31 balls. Nellai were 119/7 during the chase, but Easwaran took them close before NS Harish and Sachin Rathi finished the job.
The bowling attack has also produced several useful fantasy options. Valliappan Yudheeswaran took 3/25 against Kovai, while Sachin Rathi picked up 2/30. Emmanuel Cherian claimed two wickets.
No fresh confirmed injury withdrawal appears on the current Match 24 squad page. Rithik Easwaran, Athish SR, Sonu Yadav, Ajitesh, NS Harish, Santosh Kumar Duraisamy and Sachin Rathi are all listed in the available squad.
Key players: Rithik Easwaran, Sonu Yadav, U Mukilesh, Sachin Rathi, NS Harish and Valliappan Yudheeswaran.
Predicted Nellai Royal Kings XI: Santosh Kumar Duraisamy, Athish SR, Guruswamy Ajitesh, U Mukilesh, Rithik Easwaran (wk), Sonu Yadav (c), Muhammed Adnan Khan, NS Harish, Sachin Rathi, Valliappan Yudheeswaran, Emmanuel Cherian.
Impact option: Sachin Sre Dev/Ramalingam Rohit.
The final combination could change because TNPL teams have used impact substitutions during the season. The official XI should therefore be checked at the toss.
Salem Spartans
Salem Spartans are still looking for their first victory of TNPL 2026. Their five losses have come against VIDA Kovai Kings, Trichy Grand Cholas, Madurai Panthers, Chepauk Super Gillies and Dindigul Dragons.
Their latest defeat was particularly heavy. The match against Dindigul was reduced to 15 overs per side, and Salem conceded 239/6 before replying with 158/8. They lost by 81 runs.
There were still a few positives. Captain S Abishiek made 38 from 18 balls, while Rajendran Vivek took 3/22 with the ball. Karthick Manikandan also picked up two wickets.
Hari Nishanth has shown flashes of form but has not converted his starts consistently. His best notable recent innings was 36 against Trichy, while he made nine against Dindigul.
Sunny Sandhu is included in the current Match 24 squad and in the supplied Dream11 team. However, he did not bat or bowl in Salem’s previous completed match. His final involvement should therefore be checked at the toss before locking him into the fantasy XI.
No confirmed fresh injury withdrawal has been reported on the current Match 24 squad page. The main uncertainty is team selection rather than a known injury absence.
Key players: S Abishiek, Hari Nishanth, Rajendran Vivek, Nidhish Rajagopal, Sunny Sandhu and M Mohammed.
Predicted Salem Spartans XI: Hari Nishanth, S Abishiek (c), Rajendran Vivek, Boopathi Vaishna Kumar, Nidhish Rajagopal, Eshwar M (wk), S Harish Kumar, M Mohammed, S Ajith Ram, Karthick Manikandan, M Poiyamozhi.
Possible changes: Sunny Sandhu, Rahil Shah and Udaya Kumar M.
Fantasy update: The supplied team has a sensible captain choice in Rithik Easwaran, especially after his 69 from 31 balls against Kovai. S Abishiek is a reasonable vice-captain based on his 38 from 18 in the latest match, but Sonu Yadav and Sachin Rathi offer stronger multi-discipline or wicket-taking routes. Check Sunny Sandhu’s final selection once the playing XIs are announced.
