After four consecutive wins, Axar Patel-led Delhi Capitals (DC) have lost two of the last three matches. DC have not been outplayed but lost a couple of close encounters. Axar Patel-led side are short of overseas players. First Harry Brook pulled out, then Faf du Plessis got injured whereas Jake Fraser-McGurk has looked clueless at the top of the order. While T Natarajan's absence remains a mystery, DC may look to make a change in their side against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) who boast of plenty big-hitters in their lineup.
In their previous game, DC's bowling lacked firepower, especially the pace attack. Left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav has been doing his job but DC need more from their pacers. The overdependency on Mitchell Starc to strike early and then execute in death overs is clear. DC may look to hand debut cap to Sri Lankan pacer Dhushmantha Chameera who is capable of getting the better of Pooran. Either Mohit Sharma or Mukesh Kumar will make way for Chameera. Another change they can make is by using Sameer Rizvi as impact player in place of Donovan Ferreira.
DC Predicted Playing XI plus impact player:
Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Donovan Ferreira/Sameer Rizvi, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohit Sharma/Dushmantha Chameera, Mukesh Kumar
On the other hand, LSG don't need to make changes in their lineup. However, they will welcome speed sensation Mayank Yadav with open arms if he gets a clearance. If Mayank returns, Prince Yadav is highly likely to be benched until and unless LSG are batting first and they don't required Ayush Badoni's services in the middle-order.
LSG Predicted Playing XI plus impact player
Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), David Miller, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Ravi Bishnoi, Shardul Thakur, Prince Yadav / Mayank Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Avesh Khan
LSG vs DC Weather and Pitch Report:
The skies are expected to be clear and players may experience cramps in the Lucknow heat. The pitch is not exactly a batting paradise but there will be enough for both batters and bowlers to stay in the game.
LSG vs DC Full Squads:
DC squad: Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul(w), Axar Patel(c), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Donovan Ferreira, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohit Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sameer Rizvi, Darshan Nalkande, Dushmantha Chameera, Tripurana Vijay, Faf du Plessis, T Natarajan, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Manvanth Kumar L, Madhav Tiwari
LSG squad: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Ravi Bishnoi, Shardul Thakur, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Himmat Singh, Mayank Yadav, Shahbaz Ahmed, Matthew Breetzke, Shamar Joseph, Manimaran Siddharth, Aryan Juyal, RS Hangargekar, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Akash Maharaj Singh, Akash Deep, Arshin Kulkarni