Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings will hope to bounce back from their respective losses in their second game. Both sides got off to a winning start, but failed to carry on their momentum. DC were defeated by Rajasthan Royals, whereas, Punjab Kings suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Chennai Super Kings.
Rishabh Pant’s captaincy came under a bit of scrutiny, as he failed to manage his bowlers, which cost them the match against RR. Chasing a total of 148 runs, RR found themselves reeling at a score of 42 runs for the loss of five wickets in just ten overs. However, a few poor choices from Rishabh Pant brought back the opposition into the game.
Punjab King could score just 106 runs against Chennai Super Kings, which was chased by the Men in Yellow in just under 16 overs. PBKS lost early wickets and were reduced to a score of 26 runs for the loss of five wickets in just the sixth over. KL Rahul failed to make much of an impact, as he ran himself out after a direct hit from Ravindra Jadeja. Mohammed Shami was the pick of the bowlers for PBKS, as he picked up two wickets in his four over spell and conceded just 21 runs.
Key Players
Rishabh Pant was the standout batsman for Delhi Capitals in the last game. The DC skipper smashed 51 runs off just 32 balls, which included nine fours. In the absence of Shreyas Iyer, Pant will have to keep delivering good performances with the bat this season. The left-hander was one of the key players in India’s series victories over England and Australia and has established himself as a regular in all three formats of the game.
Shikhar Dhawan was awarded the player of the match in DC’s first game against CSK. The left-hander smashed 85 runs off just 54 balls, which included ten fours and two sixes. He managed to score just nine runs against RR as he was dismissed by Jaydev Unadkat. The Indian opener is one of the most important players for Delhi Capitals this season. He was the second-highest run-getter last season, scoring over 600 runs and two consecutive centuries.
KL Rahul has been one of the most consistent batters in IPL since the past three seasons. The Indian batsman won the Orange Cap last season, after some incredible performances with the bat. The PBKS skipper smashed 91 runs off just 50 balls in the first game against RR, including seven fours and five sixes. However, he was run out for a score of just five runs in the last game against CSK. He will hope to bounce back from his disappointment and have a good outing against Delhi Capitals on Sunday.
Mohammed Shami was the standout bowler for the Kings in the last game. He picked up two key wickets of Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu. Moreover, he was economical with the ball and conceded just 21 runs in his four overs. He was also instrumental in his side’s first match against Royals, where he picked up another two wickets.
Prediction
The match between the two sides is equally poised, with both sides looking to bounce back from their disappointing defeat. Rishabh Pant will hope to manage his bowlers better against PBKS and avoid being on the defensive side. The likes of Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane lost their wickets cheaply against Rajasthan Royals and will be looking forward to a valuable contribution with the bat.
Punjab Kings suffered a batting collapse against Chennai Super Kings, with none of the top order batsmen making much of an impact. Except for Shahrukh Khan, who scored a vital knock of 47 runs, none of the batsmen even managed to cross the 20-run mark. Nicholas Pooran was dismissed for a second consecutive duck and will hope to come up with the goods on Sunday. Riley Meredith showed a few signs of promise against CSK but failed to pick up a wicket. Jhye Richardson also disappointed with the ball, conceding 21 runs in 3 overs without picking up a single wicket.
Avesh Khan and Chris Woakes have done a decent job with the ball so far. The former has picked up five wickets for Delhi Capitals so far, whereas the Englishman has picked up four wickets. Delhi’s bowling unit was strengthened after the inclusion of Kagiso Rabada, who picked up two wickets against Punjab Kings. However, Delhi Capitals are a bit weak on their batting front, with Marcus Stoinis at number five being the last recognized batsman.
