Rajasthan Royals' pace trio have proved too much for Lucknow Super Giants, giving their team a 24-run win, as the race intensified for a place in the Indian Premier League playoffs.

IPL newcomers Gujarat Titans had earlier on Sunday confirmed their spot in the first qualifier with a seven-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings.

At the Brabourne Stadium, Rajasthan chose to bat and made 6-178 despite losing the prolific Jos Buttler for only two in the third over.

Pace bowlers Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna and Obed McCoy shared six wickets to restrict Lucknow to 8-154.

Yuzvendra Chahal, the tournament's top wicket-taker, had Deepak Hooda stumped for 59 off 39 balls as the legspinner took his tally to 24 wickets in 13 games.

The win lifted Rajasthan to second in the table behind leaders Gujarat with 16 points. Lucknow, who also have 16 points, slipped to third with a worse run-rate.

Opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal top-scored for his team with 41 after Buttler lost his off stump while going for a ramp shot against fast bowler Avesh Khan.

Devdutt Padikkal (39) and skipper Sanju Samson (32) made contributions in the middle overs before Boult (17 not out) and Ravichandran Ashwin (10 not out) added valuable runs in the last two overs.

Legspinner Ravi Bishnoi (2-31) picked up the wickets of Padikkal and Riyan Parag.

Wicketkeeper-batter Wriddhiman Saha hit an unbeaten 67 as Gujarat reached 3-137 with five balls to spare against Chennai for their 10th win in a blockbuster debut IPL season.

Chennai, ninth in the table with eight points, had earlier struggled to reach 5-133 against some tidy Gujarat bowling led by Mohammed Shami, who finished with 2-19.

"We were not chasing a big target, so I took my chances in the powerplay and then there was no need to take chances as the required rate was under six," Saha said.

Matheesha Pathirana, Chennai's 19-year-old Sri Lanka fast bowler, impressed in his IPL debut when he had Shubman Gill (18) trapped leg before wicket off a brilliant first-ball yorker.

Pathirana also found the leading edge of Gujarat skipper Hardik Pandya (7) to finish with 2-24, but Saha stood firm to score his third half-century of the season which featured eight fours and a six.