Delhi Capitals (DC) have a shot at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 playoffs spot but they need to get their campaign back on track in the home game against a consistent Gujarat Titans (GT) on May 18. Mitchell Starc not returning for DC is a big blow but the team has little time to ponder over it as they are in desperate need of a win.
Starc leaving DC means T Natarajan is guaranteed a spot. Natarajan took a wicket against Punjab Kings (PBKS) before the game was called off in Dharamsala. DC roped in Bangladesh's left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman in place of Jake Fraser-McGurk who chose not to return for remainder of the IPL. Mustafizur picked up two wickets against UAE on May 17 and is unlikely to participate in the match against GT straightaway.
DC are unlikely to make many changes in the batting lineup. It will be interesting to see if they stick with Karun Nair or give Sameer Rizvi a chance. Also, they have a chance of going with Afghanistan's Sediqullah Atal who was roped in as Harry Brook's replacement. In the bowling department, there will be a toss-up between Mukesh Kumar and Mohit Sharma. Dushmantha Chameera is likely to get another game as Mustafizur's participation in the game is not confirmed.
DC predicted Playing XI plus impact player -
Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, KL Rahul (wk), Sameer Rizvi/Karun Nair/Sediquallah Atal, Axar Patel (C), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mukesh Kumar/Mohit Sharma, Dushmantha Chameera/Mustafizur Rahman, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan
On the other hand, DC have a settled batting lineup. Their top three batters are in contention of the orange cap. In the bowling department, Prasidh Krishna has been on fire and well-supported by Mohammed Siraj. Rashid Khan has come back in form as well. The only change Shubman Gill may look to make is replacing Gerald Coetzee by Kagiso Rabada. The experienced Proteas pacer can rattle DC's top order which is already under pressure. If Rabada gets a chance, it will be his first game since the ban.
GT Predicted Playing XI plus impact player -
Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Arshad Khan, Gerald Coetzee/Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
DC vs GT Pitch Report -
High scores are expected in Delhi considering the pitch conditions and dimensions of the ground. However, there is enough assistance for the spinners from the pitch. While DC have plenty of spin options, it will be interesting to see whether Gill is happy to hold back R Sai Kishore once again in the name of match-ups.
DC vs GT Full Squads:
DC Squad: Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul(w), Axar Patel(c), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Kuldeep Yadav, Dushmantha Chameera, Mohit Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan, Mustafizur Rahman, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Darshan Nalkande, Sediqullah Atal, Sameer Rizvi, Donovan Ferreira, Tripurana Vijay, Manvanth Kumar L, Madhav Tiwari
GT Squad: Shubman Gill(c), Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler(w), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Gerald Coetzee, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Arshad Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Jayant Yadav, Nishant Sindhu, Gurnoor Brar, Kumar Kushagra, Manav Suthar, Anuj Rawat, Kulwant Khejroliya, Karim Janat, Mahipal Lomror, Washington Sundar, Kusal Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Ishant Sharma