In-form Delhi will face KL Rahul’s Punjab in the second doubleheader encounter of this weekend in Indian T20 League 2021. Both sides are coming off comprehensive victories.
Match Timings: May 02, 7:30 PM IST
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Punjab and Delhi meet in the second game of Super Sunday in search of another victory. Both times thrashed their oppositions in previous encounters. This game is important for both Rahul and Pant to boost their points-table game.
Punjab has to break their alternative wins theory as they fail to win back-to-back games. They produce a fabulous win and second game, they deliver a failure. Consistency would be a key factor for the playoffs. After finishing the first half, Punjab has three wins out of four and it’s not bad. In the previous game, they overcame tournament’s favourites Bangalore by 34 runs, courtesy of KL Rahul’s 91 and Harpreet Brar’s surprising all-round performance. Brar’s inclusion in the side helped Punjab to boost their spin attack. Punjab now have two quality spinners with Bishnoi and Brar. Pooran got his 4th duck in the last game and Punjab now has to take Malan this time. If Malan misses out again, it would be unfair to him. Arshdeep might be back in the side as his injury is not so big. Meredith will miss out this game and if Punjab looks for an overseas option, then they can pick Richardson. Mayank Agarwal might be rested again until he gets fit completely. Punjab has the power to stun Delhi but they just need to play their natural game. They have quality players who can change the game within few balls. Punjab should also avoid extra changes to the playing XI as the second half starts now.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s campaign is going in the right way and they added their 5th win of the season after defeating Kolkata with ease. Shaw and Dhawan are going unstoppable and both have been the pillars of the batting lineup. The previous season, they had issues on top-order but this year, top-order is Delhi’s big strength. Shaw and Dhawan both stand in the list of top five leading run-scorers of the season. Middle-order is carried by Pant, Smith and Hetmyer but they have to change their gears. The strike rate has been the concern of Pant and Smith this season. Axar Patel and Amit Mishra are doing well in middle-overs, following the effective pace-bowling of Ishant and Avesh Khan. Rabada looked off the colours this season but he can be a match-winner any day. With one more win can send Delhi to the top of the table with 12 points and they will be in a safe position.
It will be the second game of the season between two and Delhi defeated Punjab in the previous game by 6 wickets. In the previous five encounters, Delhi and Punjab both have two wins each and one game was tied. Delhi are favourites tonight but Punjab can surprise them.
Pitch Report
Motera’s track is good for batting and this surface looks promising good for T20 due to its balanced assistance for batsmen and bowlers. Chasing would be tricky while chasing 170 plus total.
Possible XI
Punjab
KL Rahul (c), Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Chris Gayle, Deepak Hooda, Dawid Malan, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Chris Jordan, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami
Delhi
Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Steven Smith, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Kagiso Rabada, Ishant Sharma, Avesh Khan
Key Players
Punjab
KL Rahul
331 runs at an avg of 66.20, 91 in the previous game
Ravi Bishnoi
Quality leg-spin, 4 wickets with an eco of 4.75
Delhi
Shikhar Dhawan
311 runs at an avg of 44.43, 46 in the previous game
Prithvi Shaw
268 runs at an avg of 38.43, 82 in previous game
