We are just moments away from the beginning of the penultimate match of Vivo IPL 12 as the Dad’s Army Chennai Super Kings and the Kid’s army Delhi Capitals square off in the Qualifier 2 in Vizag in a few minutes time from now. Chennai Super Kings will look to get back to winning ways after losing 5 of their last 7 matches. On the other hand, Delhi Capitals looks a strong unit who has the ability to dismantle a struggling Chennai Super Kings.
The yellow brigade did finish at the top of the points table but was nowhere near their best during the major part of the tournament. None of the top order batters has been consistent with a couple of exceptions by Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis in a couple of matches. Barring a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the skipper of CSK none of the batsmen have looked comfortable.
MS Dhoni is having a sensational tournament both as a leader and as a batsman. He is going through a purple patch and taken on top-class bowlers with disdain despite being in the twilight of his career. However, when Dhoni hasn’t been there, CSK has faltered big time. The bowling department has been managed well by MSD with the likes of Harbhajan Singh and Imran Tahir doing the job for CSK. Tahir has been the premier spinner for them and has played all the matches so far.
Delhi Capitals have played a fearless brand of cricket which have resulted in them being on the cusp of qualifying for their maiden IPL final in the history. The presence of Rishabh has been another fairytale story. The southpaw has played some exceptional knocks and also bagged the Man of the Match Award against Sunrisers Hyderabad during the eliminator clash. However, his main area of concern has been his inability to finish off matches.
It will be a tough task for DC in the bowling department as they will be missing the services of Kagiso Rabada who has been the leading wicket-taker in Vivo IPL 12. However when you get Trent Boult in his return then you shouldn’t complain. The form of veteran spinner Amit Mishra in the last few matches has also been of immense help for DC. All in all, we are in for a super exciting clash slated to start in 25 minutes time.
Who Won the Toss?
The Toss was won by MS Dhoni, the skipper of Chennai Super Kings and he decided to field first.
Here is what both captains said during the toss:
MS Dhoni:
We’ll bowl first. Depends on how the bowler’s start. Some of the tosses are crucial but it depends on how the opposition bats. I don’t mind that because all this increases the anticipation. Ultimately, you need to be aged to be experienced but again, there are pros and cons for everything. One change – Shardul in for Vijay
Shreyas Iyer:
Looks a far better one than the previous game. We felt that during practice too. We would have batted first actually, so not a bad toss to lose. We’re unchanged as we don’t want to put pressure on any new player.
Playing XI’s
Delhi Capitals:
Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Colin Munro, Axar Patel, Sherfane Rutherford, Keemo Paul, Amit Mishra, Trent Boult, Ishant Sharma
Chennai Super Kings:
Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni(w/c), Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Imran Tahir