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Delhi Capitals (DC) will once again begin their Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign in hopes of winning their maiden title. While DC qualified for the playoffs after finishing at the top of the points table, Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians (MI) finished fifth last season. The five-time winners will not look to repeat their almost-ritual like start of losing their first game this time around as on paper, they look stronger than Delhi due to unavailability of overseas players for the latter.
With just two overseas players available for the first match, Rishabh Pant will have to depend on local talent to win their first game. The absence of Australian veterans David Warner, Mitchell Marsh and South African speedster Anrich Nortje is a big reason of worry for the Capitals.
On the other hand, Rohit will have more overseas players at this disposal for the clash at Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai and look more balanced compared to Capitals. However, they will also miss the services of their star batter Suryakumar Yadav.
Under-19 debutants
India’s Under-19 World Cup 2022-winning captain Yash Dhull may get to make his IPL debut in absence of star overseas players. It is a similar situation for ‘Baby AB’ aka Dewald Brevis, who may get to make his debut in the absence of hard-hitting Suryakumar.
Point to prove
DC opener Prithvi Shaw will have a point to prove in the first game as he will not have experienced Shikhar Dhawan walking out to bat with him this time around. He may open the innings alongside New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Tim Seifert, who barely got any chances last season for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
Squads:
DC: Prithvi Shaw, Tim Seifert, Srikar Bharat, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Rovman Powell, Sarfaraz Khan, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Khaleel Ahmed, Kuldeep Yadav, Chetan Sakariya, Mandeep Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Lalit Yadav, Ashwin Hebbar, Praveen Dubey, Ripal Patel, Yash Dhull, Vicky Ostwal
MI: Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan(w), Tilak Varma, Dewald Brevis, Kieron Pollard, Tim David, Sanjay Yadav, Tymal Mills, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah, Anmolpreet Singh, Murugan Ashwin, Riley Meredith, Fabian Allen, Basil Thampi, Ramandeep Singh, Daniel Sams, Aryan Juyal, Arjun Tendulkar, Hrithik Shokeen, Rahul Buddhi, Arshad Khan
