After three alternating wins and losses, the Punjab Kings will take on last season’s table-toppers, the Delhi Capitals, in their next Tata Indian Premier League match on Wednesday, April 20, 2022.
While PBKS has six points from six games and are at the seventh position on the Tata IPL points table, DC have four points, having won two of their five games this season, and are one spot below the Kings currently.
Both teams come into this game with a loss in their most recent match, and will be looking to snatch a win and move ahead on the points table. Before the big clash, below are some things worth keeping in mind.
Recent form
The Punjab Kings have blown hot and cold, with their last match against Sunrisers Hyderabad ending in a 7-wicket loss. The results of their six games from the beginning are W, L, W, L, W, L.
In their most recent game, the Delhi Capitals faced a 16-run loss at the hands of the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Their Tata IPL journey has looked like this so far: W, L, L, W, L.
The David Warner-Kagiso Rabada battle
Australian opener David Warner has been in good form and even scored a 38-ball 66 in the Delhi Capitals most recent match. Kagiso Rabada has picked seven wickets from five games this season so far and will be itching to get more.
The duo share interesting statistics, with Warner scoring 61 runs off Rabada’s 39 deliveries, and the South African dismissing the batter thrice. It will be interesting to see who prevails in this battle.
Liam Livingstone vs Kuldeep Yadav
Middle-order batter Liam Livingstone’s form has been encouraging for the Punjab Kings, with the English batter scoring 224 runs in six games, averaging at 37.33 and striking at 185.12. He has three half-centuries in six games, with the fastest coming off 21 deliveries and the slowest off 27 balls.
The explosive batter can expect to face a challenge from Kuldeep Yadav, DC’s in-form spinner, whose best performance this season has been a four-wicket haul against his former side, KKR. Currently, he has 11 wickets this season from five matches.
The Brabourne pitch
The Brabourne stadium offers high support to the batters and the shorter boundaries are extremely encouraging for the players to hit big and score more. The game on April 18 between Rajasthan Royals and the Kolkata Knight Riders saw the former put up 217/5 on board, the highest score for a team this season. KKR came threateningly close at 210 before the RR bowlers put a stop to their chase. Thus, tall scores are expected here.
Both PBKS and DC have played two games each at Brabourne. While the Kings won one, against CSK, and lost one, against the Gujarat Titans, both of DC’s wins have come here.
All evidence points to this encounter being another close one. Sit back, relax and watch the game unfold on Wednesday, April 20, at 7.30 PM.