Although the Capitals have largely outperformed the Kings in the previous two seasons, the two teams are level at the beginning of the new campaign in IPL 2024.
The comeback of Rishabh Pant, who survived a car disaster in December 2022, will be the main plot point leading up to the opening day match of the 2024 Indian Premier League. Whether he can rapidly determine his match fitness is the question. Coming back from what he has is never easy, even though Pant participated in multiple practice matches at the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru before to receiving permission to play in the IPL.
Pant is expected to start as wicketkeeper on match night, based on his training session. Between Jake Fraser-McGurk and Tristan Stubbs, who proved his mettle as a finisher in the SA20, there’s probably a tie. Parth Jindal, the co-owner of the Capitals, had stated that Jhye Richardson would miss the team’s first few games due to a side strain, but he is still with the squad and getting better. Anrich Nortje, who is still in South Africa, will also be absent for the Capitals.
It’s the Punjab Kings’ first game at their brand-new Mullanpur home base. In its six IPL 2023 games, the Kings only managed one victory in their old home venue, the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali. The Capitals have defeated the Kings in fifteen of the thirty-two games they have played overall, but in the past two years, they have won five of six.
The lack of a power batter in the lower order outside from Jitesh Sharma was a weakness for the Kings last year, despite the fact that Jonny Bairstow, who missed the IPL 2023 due to an injury, has returned to bolster their top order. Ashutosh Sharma or Shashank Singh, who are both powerful hitters with a propensity for smashing sixes, can be used to fill the void.
Venue : PCA New Stadium, Mullanpur
Probable XI for Punjab Kings : Shikhar Dhawan (c), Jonny Bairstow, Prabhsimran Singh, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sikandar Raza, Harshal Patel, Harpreet Brar, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh
Probable XI for Delhi Capitals : Prithvi Shaw, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant(C), Tristan Stubbs, Kumar Kushagra, Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Anrich Nortje
