The game seems to be in DC's bag on paper but KL Rahul's men have somewhat emerged as giant slayers in this edition so far.
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Two teams that have had mostly contradictory results, two teams that are coming off the backs of dominating victories, and two teams that are hungry to secure a place in the playoffs. That is the story of the Punjab Kings and the Delhi Capitals as they get ready to square off against each other in match 29 of the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). PBKS recorded a handsome victory against title contenders Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) while DC comfortably dispatched Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in their respective previous encounters. On paper, DC should be able to bag the points against the Punjab-based franchise, but PBKS are turning out to be somewhat of a dark horse as the season progresses.
Here are the predicted starting lineups for PBKS vs DC.
KL Rahul (Captain, WK): The PBKS skipper has been in fine form throughout the season and emerged as the Orange Cap holder after the match against RCB. The skipper played a massive innings of an unbeaten 91 runs off 57 deliveries against RCB.
Mayank Agarwal: Mayank has also been in fine form but he was forced to sit out PBKS’ previous game over an injury concern. If the opener is fit to start against DC, there is no doubt that he will be picked.
Chris Gayle: The West Indian turned on the style against RCB and rolled back the years as he scored an explosive 46 runs off just 24 deliveries.
Nicholas Pooran: It was yet another duck for the West Indian but he is an extremely useful man to have on the field while bowling. He is an agile fielder and has been involved in several outstanding fielding efforts.
Deepak Hooda: Hooda had an unimpressive game last time around, however, he seemed to have found some form in previous encounters both with bat and ball. It is likely that PBKS will stick with him.
Shahrukh Khan: The youngster might have scored a duck in the previous match but has shown that he can hang with the big names, owing to the explosive cameos he has played this season.
Harpreet Brar: Brar absolutely stole the show against RCB as he scored a quickfire 25 runs off 17 deliveries and picked up the wickets of Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, and AB de Villiers. Kohli and Maxwell were ousted in the same over off consecutive deliveries.
Riley Meredith: Meredith proved to be expensive as he conceded 29 runs in just over three overs, but he also ousted the dangerous Devdutt Padikkal at the top of the RCB innings.
Chris Jordan: The English pacer has proven that he can smash the ball a long way ith the bat, and is effective as ever with the ball. He sent Rajat Patidar back to the pavilion in the match against RCB.
Mohammed Shami: Shami is KL Rahul’s most experienced bowler and he has not disappointed his team. Shami took the wicket of Harshal Patel, who was looking dangerous, in the RCB game.
Ravi Bishnoi: The leg-spinner brought his A-game against RCB as he picked up two wickets for only 17 runs off his four overs and took an exceptional catch as well.
Prithvi Shaw: Shaw played a fantastic and explosive knock against the Knight Riders as he scored 82 runs off 41 deliveries. He has been in a decent run of form all season.
Shikhar Dhawan: DC’s most consistent batter this season scored a slow yet steady knock of 46 runs off 47 deliveries against KKR. His partnership with Shaw ultimately laid the foundation for a massive DC victory.
Steve Smith: The Aussie has not yet played a massive innings that he is well capable of, but has contributed to the side with important cameos and impressive fielding.
Lalit Yadav: Lalit might not have gotten the chance to bat against KKR but he had found a fairly good run of form with the bat and he will be looking to do the same against PBKS.
Rishabh Pant (Captain, WK): Pant played a fine cameo of 16 runs off 8 deliveries against KKR, and has been playing well throughout the season, both as a cricketer and as a captain.
Marcus Stoinis: The Aussie faced only three deliveries against KKR and managed to score si runs. He had a more significant contribution with the ball however as he ousted Rahul Tripathi.
Shimron Hetmyer: The West Indian is one of the most dangerous batters in the world down the order and DC would be reliant on him for getting them to a big total should the top order under-performs.
Axar Patel: Ever since he was cured of COVID-19, Axar has been in fine form and it continued against KKR. He picked up two wickets in his four overs and conceded 32 runs.
Kagiso Rabada: Surprisingly enough, the South African did not get a wicket against KKR. However, he is Rishabh’s most lethal bowler and he will look to get amongst the wickets against PBKS.
Ishant Sharma: The veteran pacer also failed to grab a wicket but he is an integral part of the DC squad and has tons of experience at his behest.
Avesh Khan: The youngster proved to be slightly expensive but he managed to pick up the wicket of Dinesh Karthik. He conceded 31 runs in his four overs.
