The essential bits up front. Punjab Kings have won the toss – Shreyas Iyer didn’t hesitate, “We’ll have a bowl.” It’s the third season running he has said those words in Chennai and the previous two calls brought victories, so no tinkering there. The surface looks flat, maybe 200-plus, but recent evenings have offered a bit of grip once the lights come on.
PBKS, understandably, keep an unchanged XI. Priyansh Arya is the most likely Impact player, again mirroring past games when they chased.
Chennai Super Kings, meanwhile, finally unleash the auction’s headline signing. Prashant Veer – 20 years old, left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder, INR 14.2 crore price tag – walks straight into the middle order. “We like what he does under pressure,” coach Stephen Fleming said yesterday. To make room, Matthew Short drops out of the starting side and, given CSK are batting first, probably the whole match.
The home team field only two overseas players at the start – Matt Henry and Noor Ahmad – leaving a vacancy for the Impact slot. Fast-bowling coach Eric Simons hinted Jamie Overton is first in line, although Rahul Chahar offers a wrist-spin alternative if the pitch slows right up.
Still no MS Dhoni. He batted in the nets on Friday but that calf niggle lingers. Dewald Brevis remains sidelined with a sore flank.
Starting XIs
Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (capt), Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Noor Ahmad, Matt Henry, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed.
Impact bench: Jamie Overton, Rahul Chahar, Matthew Short, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Gurjapneet Singh.
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shreyas Iyer (capt), Cooper Connolly, Shashank Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Impact bench: Suryansh Shedge, Priyansh Arya, Vishnu Vinod, Pravin Dubey, Harpreet Brar.
A quick glance at the match-ups
• Left-arm angle of Marco Jansen to the right-hand heavy CSK top order; he removed Gaikwad twice last year.
• Veer v Chahal – the debutant’s leg-spin game against the veteran wrist-spinner could decide the middle overs.
• Death overs: Arshdeep’s yorkers versus Dube and Overton’s hitting.
Numbers game
PBKS have won their last three at Chepauk, all chasing, with partnerships of 70-plus on each occasion. CSK haven’t lost four home games on the bounce to the same opponent since 2011-14 (Mumbai Indians).
And a word on expectations
The crowd will still chant Dhoni’s name; they always do. But tonight belongs, at least early on, to a 20-year-old from Kanpur who cost CSK a fortune. If Prashant Veer settles the nerves quickly, the home side’s balance suddenly looks a lot healthier. If not, PBKS already know the road map round here.
