Delhi Capitals (DC) won the toss and elected to bowl first against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 in Dharamsala on May 11.
What changes did DC & PBKS make to their playing XI?
PBKS made just one change to their playing XI as they brought in debutant Ben Dwarshuis in place of Lockie Ferguson. Meanwhile, DC surprisingly made five changes to their fold. Abhishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, David Miller, Auqib Nabi and Madhav Tiwari walked into DC's playing XI.
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What did the captains say at the toss?
DC captain Axar Patel, after winning the toss, said:
"Axar Patel - We will be bowling. That's the only thing going right (winning 9 out of 12 tosses). (The situation has become very tight?) Yeah, obviously, that is correct, even in the match, the crucial moments have been lost - in batting, bowling, and fielding. Otherwise, we have not played that bad a cricket. (Mathematically, it is still possible to qualify, so what is the thinking and what is the conversation before this match?) No, before this match, it is [about] thinking that we will play our cricket. You know, mathematically, we don't have to depend on the other teams. We will play our brand of cricket, and whatever the result is, we will take it as a team. When you win, you enjoy it. So, whenever you have time, you should enjoy it, and this is what we are talking about. (You have won matches by chasing - is that the reason to bowl first?) No, basically, it is fresh cricket and in Dharamshala, this has been a high-scoring round. So, it is fresh cricket, and we don't know what will happen. The swing is also available for the fast bowlers. So, we are thinking that if we bat first, we will get a pitch idea, so we are chasing. (Changes?) There are five changes, so Abhishek Porel, Sahil Parakh is playing, David Miller is playing, Auqib Nabi is playing, and Madhav Tiwari is playing."
Meanwhile, PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer, after losing the toss, said:
"Honestly, you can't tell a lot about the pitch until you play on it. Go out there and perform,. We don't want to think too much about the points table, just focus on your ability and instincts - that's what we have not done well in the last few games, we haven't backed our instincts and do well under pressure. There are going to be ups and downs, it's all about how quickly you go past it. Ben Dwarshius comes in place of Lockie Ferguson, who has a slight niggle."
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Punjab Kings (Playing XI):
Prabhsimran Singh(w), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer(c), Suryansh Shedge, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Ben Dwarshuis, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Punjab Kings Impact Subs: Harpreet Brar, Yash Thakur, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Praveen Dubey
Delhi Capitals (Playing XI):
KL Rahul(w), Abishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel(c), Madhav Tiwari, Mukesh Kumar, Auqib Nabi Dar, Mitchell Starc, Lungi Ngidi
Delhi Capitals Impact subs: Pathum Nissanka, Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Tripurana Vijay