Kings XI Punjab will be looking to get on winning track when they meet Delhi Daredevils in their upcoming game on Sunday. After suffering their first loss in the tournament after two emphatic victories, Punjab would be eager to forget their recent the loss by defeating DD and increase their authority in the points table. The upcoming contest is set to be enticing. Delhi Daredevils have just entered the victory path and will be high on confidence after a recent thumping win over Rising Pune Supergiant. DD looked absolutely dominating against them and Punjab will be aware of this fact.
Previous encounter:
Kings XI Punjab was on top of Delhi Daredevils when they both the teams last met in the IPL. Playing at their home venue at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Punjab trounced DD narrowly by restricting their opposition for just 172 while defending their first innings total of 181.
Batting first, opener Marcus Stoinis and Wriddhiman Saha both hit half-centuries to set the platform for a competitive total. Later, the Stoinis made an impact again with the ball and snapped three wickets in his four overs spell. Ks Cariappa and Sandeep Sharma also backed up him as DD failed to reach the total despite having 70-run opening wicket stand between Quinton de Kock and Sanju Samson in just 7.5 overs.
Recent Form:
Kings XI Punjab currently sits at the third position after 2 wins and a loss in three matches. A handsome win in the next match will take them to the second position while a loss will see them crash to the 5th position (something they wouldn’t want to happen).
Kings XI Punjab were off to a dream start this season after winning both their opening match against Rising Pune Supergiants and Royal Challengers Bangalore before they suffered their first defeat at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders.
The loss was majorly due to a bowling failure which helped the opposition chase down a fairly challenging total. The batting also did not look at its best as five out of their top six batsmen got to a start and lost their wickets after reaching 20’s. This fact should bother them hugely and must be resurrected at the earliest.
Win/Loss:
LWWLL (Most recent first)
Talking Points:
Resting T. Natarajan didn’t look a good decision. Although Ishant Sharma, the bowler for whom Natarajan made way, did an impressive job, it would have only fair to test the young fast bowler by giving him a few more matches.
The left-arm fast bowler was pretty expensive in both the matches he played but he also got a limited number of overs. He has a sort of deceiving factor in him and unfortunately hasn’t got his act together.
However, Maxi can show some more faith him in the youngster and help him make use of his full potential. Kings XI Punjab will surely benefit a lot from the Natarajan. His performances at the domestic level are a proof of his capabilities.
Here is the XI:
Hashim Amla, Mana Vohra, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha, Axar Patel, Mohit Sharma, Varun Aaron/T. Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma.