For teams, the IPL season is reaching a business end, and they will need to find consistency and form. The Delhi Capitals (DC) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) make a high-stakes appearance against each other at Arun Jaitley Stadium. For DC, it is their second consecutive match in just three nights, and they will be hoping home advantage is the difference this time after a poor run of form.
Delhi started off well this season but has disappointingly succumbed to three of their last five matches. Here, the stability in the batting lineup, with that opening combination being the most unstable one, has brought a domino effect in the middle order. The DC has remained competitive and even managed a winning run here or there, but there is still a sense of unrest for them. While playoffs are still to be concluded, the team management should constantly select a potent eleven and keep on with it to regain momentum and also get their most important batsmen in shape, especially when batting first, when they’ve been found wanting with the big scores they’ve been able to muster.
To their credit, KKR has been more consistent with the bat overall, but it is very clear when they struggle with the bat. Despite the rain abandoning the game, they were denied a chance to get their rhythm back. They now go to Kotla, a ground with smaller boundaries, where they should be able to kick-start their campaign. Such selection dilemmas for KKR: Should Venkatesh Iyer be dropped in favour of former member of their Young Guns unit Angkrish Raghuvanshi at No. 4? Which will be the better move: to start Ramandeep Singh from the starting XI or to stock up the bowling?
The sides are each in desperate need of a win. A loss here would grind the DC’s chances of a playoff finish to a great extent, even if DC still has a mathematical chance. A round of fixtures which has come at the worst possible time is putting the screws on KKR, with three losses already putting the screws on KKR and with two defeats and one draw they are teetering and risk falling into the midtable scrap. Playoff hopes are on the line in Delhi, and it is going to be a shootout.
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