As Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Daredevils are placed at the bottom half-of-the points table with both teams pushing hard not only to grab two crucial points from the match.
There are teams which are enjoying the merry run followed by the teams which further rely on their roller coaster ride as individual performances have also become the centre of attraction in the ongoing fast-paced tournament.
Both Kings XI and Delhi Daredevils are looking to improve their rankings on the points table as the visitors have had to pull something exceptional to stay in the contest.
It would be an all-important game for both the teams – to stay in the hunt for playoffs competition which will start from May 16 onwards.
Overview:
Kings XI Punjab: Following the trend, Mohali-based outfit changed the captain to find some luck which so far has been to no avail except few blazing performances that had further witnessed them losing the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad by 26 runs after bowlers didn’t capitalize on keeping visitors under check while leaking runs against balanced unit of the defending champions.
In eight matches, Kings XI have registered three wins as they have collected six points to see themselves at number six position.
Kings XI Punjab, whose bowlers has a task cut out against Daredevils’ young crop of players at the top before their formidable batting line-up would make their things easier in order to chase down the tricky totals.
Delhi Daredevils: With Delhi having the batting line-up which seemed a good unit followed by an impressive bowling department. But they are yet hit it in a right way – to leave an impact with their fielding as well which has proved them costly in a seven-wicket loss against Kolkata Knight Riders.
In their previous game, the visitors had a good start at Eden Garden, but they later faltered to keep up the momentum and thereon, failed to set the daunting total for formidable Kolkata Knight Riders.
However, Daredevils’ story is miserable, to say the least, as they are languishing at the bottom of the points’ ladder with four points in seven games after losing four matches on the trot.
Daredevils would rely on their senior campaigner and captain Zaheer Khan, who was able to bowl only 1.1 overs after he was seen clutching his hamstring in his follow through when he was bowling against Robin Uthappa of Knight Riders.
Kagiso Raba, Chris Morris and Pat Cummins have to pull off something sensational alongside their young batting prospects in the form of Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant to keep their team afloat for the enticing competition.
Tracking The Strength:
Kings XI Punjab: Glenn Maxwell led side Kings XI Punjab have a decent batting line-up at the helm which has the capability either to chase down the target or set a daunting total for the opposition.
Maxwell has to come up and set an example for rest of the batting line-up which is further blessed with South African pair Hashim Amla and David Miller followed by Marcus Stoinis, Shaun Marsh from Australia and Martin Guptill from New Zealand.
However, Amla missed out in the last match after pulling his hamstring before Martin Guptill was inducted in the Playing XI.
Delhi Daredevils: They looked a more balanced unit on a paper, but had faltered when they tried to apply theories into practice on the ground.
However, on the flip side, Daredevils bowling seems a promising prospect which has availed the services of Kagiso Raba, who could unnerve any settled unit in the batting department following by Pat Cummins and Zaheer Khan, who uses his players well, but so far the story hasn’t been that good for the Delhi boys in nutshell.
The left-arm fast bowler Zaheer Khan’s leadership would face a litmus test as there are on the brink of losing out from the play-off stage of this ongoing edition.
In addition, Chris Morris has to prove his mettle both with the ball and a ball and he is capable of yielding results in a shorter version of the game alongside New Zealand recruit Corey Anderson.
Match Prediction:
While having the Mohali ground to play at, we could expect run-fest given to the batting line-up hosts are banking on as the visitors have also a batting line-up which has the ability to score big.
On the other side Daredevils is a force to reckon with as they are looking forward to making a comeback after losing last four fixtures consecutively.
Batsmen would enjoy the ride as there are many points to thriving at whereas, Daredevils batsmen would not like to repeat same mistakes by getting stuck after going through a decent start.
We would be expecting that side batting first would post 185-plus on board to make things a bit difficult for the opposition.
It’s highly likely that Kings XI might emerge as winners of the game.
In the previous encounter of the ongoing tenth edition, Daredevils has routed Kings XI Punjab by 51 runs on April 15 at Feroz Shah Kotla Ground in New Delhi.
In head-to-head games, both teams played 19 matches in which Kings XI registered a win in 10 matches and Daredevils has claimed nine wins.
Out of four matches at Mohali, Kings XI has won three in four games against Daredevils.