In the latest Indian Premier League clash, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s captain, Rajat Patidar, opted to field first against Delhi Capitals at Arun Jaitley Stadium. Patidar’s decision was based on the expectation that the pitch would remain favourable for batting throughout the match, giving his team confidence in chasing down a target.
RCB were compelled to make a change to their starting line-up, as opener Phil Salt was sidelined due to a fever. In his place, Jacob Bethell from England was handed his IPL debut. Bethell, who bats left-handed and bowls left-arm orthodox spin, posed a question for the team regarding his batting position, and whether he would open alongside local hero Virat Kohli.
Delhi Capitals, meanwhile, were buoyed by the return of Faf du Plessis, who had been absent with a groin injury since the previous fixture against RCB in Bengaluru on April 10. Du Plessis replaced Ashutosh Sharma in the side, allowing DC to field their full complement of four overseas players after using just three in their last outing. Should extra batting be required, Ashutosh Sharma could still feature as an Impact Player, given DC’s current line-up already includes six bowling options.
The stakes are high for both sides, as the victor will secure the top spot on the points table, boasting a total of 14 points.
Delhi Capitals Starting XI:
1. Faf du Plessis
2. Abishek Porel
3. Karun Nair
4. KL Rahul (wk)
5. Axar Patel (capt)
6. Tristan Stubbs
7. Vipraj Nigam
8. Mitchell Starc
9. Dushmantha Chameera
10. Kuldeep Yadav
11. Mukesh Kumar
DC Impact Player Options: Ashutosh Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Madhav Tiwari, Tripurana Vijay.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Starting XI:
1. Virat Kohli
2. Jacob Bethell
3. Rajat Patidar (capt)
4. Romario Shepherd
5. Jitesh Sharma (wk)
6. Tim David
7. Krunal Pandya
8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar
9. Suyash Sharma
10. Josh Hazlewood
11. Yash Dayal
RCB Impact Player Options: Devdutt Padikkal, Rasikh Salam, Manoj Bhandage, Liam Livingstone, Swapnil Singh.
