Faf du Plessis stepped in as Delhi Capitals’ (DC) captain for the second consecutive match, opting to bowl in their season finale against Punjab Kings (PBKS). The usual captain, Axar Patel, remains sidelined due to illness, having missed the last match against Mumbai Indians.
At the coin toss, Du Plessis highlighted a strategic change, with Karun Nair returning to the side, replacing Abishek Porel. In Porel’s absence, Tristan Stubbs will take over wicketkeeping duties. Significant changes also include Sediqullah Atal’s IPL debut, filling in for Dushmantha Chameera.
On the PBKS front, captain Shreyas Iyer expressed the team’s intent to maintain their momentum despite already securing a playoff spot. The team enjoyed three consecutive wins before this match, with their last victory against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur.
PBKS have introduced Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis into their line-up, replacing Mitchell Owen and Xavier Bartlett. A win against DC would propel them to 19 points, securing the top spot on the leaderboard.
PBKS starting XI for batting first: 1. Prabhsimran Singh, 2. Priyansh Arya, 3. Josh Inglis (wk), 4. Shreyas Iyer (capt), 5. Nehal Wadhera, 6. Shashank Singh, 7. Marcus Stoinis, 8. Marco Jansen, 9. Azmatullah Omarzai, 10. Harpreet Brar, 11. Arshdeep Singh. Impact Substitutes are Pravin Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Xavier Bartlett, and Kyle Jamieson.
Delhi Capitals line-up for bowling first: 1. Faf du Plessis (capt), 2. Sediqullah Atal, 3. Karun Nair, 4. Sameer Rizvi, 5. Tristan Stubbs (wk), 6. Ashutosh Sharma, 7. Vipraj Nigam, 8. Kuldeep Yadav, 9. Mohit Sharma, 10. Mustafizur Rahman, 11. Mukesh Kumar. Their Impact Substitutes are KL Rahul, Manvanth Kumar, Tripurna Vijay, Ajay Mandal, and Darshan Nalkande.
The clash promises excitement as Delhi seeks a positive end to their campaign, while Punjab aims for a decisive victory to cap their strong run into the playoffs.
