IPL 2023, PBKS vs DC | Punjab Kings will look to keep playoff hopes alive by registering a big win over Delhi

Dharamsala: The Punjab Kings team will try to keep alive their hopes of making it to the Indian Premier League (IPL 16) playoffs by registering a big win against Delhi Capitals here on Wednesday. The Delhi team is already out of the race for the playoffs and will try to maintain honor in this match and spoil the equation of Punjab Kings. The campaign for Punjab so far has been one of ups and downs. He has won six matches so far but he has also faced defeat in the same number of matches. His team is in eighth place with 12 points but is still in contention for a place in the playoffs. However, he needs to improve his net run rate which is currently minus 0.268. Also read The 31-run win against Delhi last week would have boosted Punjab’s morale and the Shikhar Dhawan-led side will leave no stone unturned to get a favorable result this time too. However, Punjab will have to perform much better in their batting. Apart from opener Prabhsimran Singh, none of the batsmen could run against Delhi. Barring Dhawan and to a lesser extent Prabhsimran, the rest of their batsmen are yet to perform as expected. Punjab bowlers also need to improve their performance. They have a good bowling attack in the form of Nathan Ellis, Sam Curran and Arshdeep Singh but they have often failed to defend their scores. Delhi Capitals, on the other hand, have had a nightmare season and are out of contention for a place in the playoffs. Delhi have been let down by their batsmen throughout this season. Of the Indian batsmen included in the Delhi team, only Akshar Patel has been able to perform well. The failure of Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan has cost Delhi dearly. In such a situation, the team had to field its foreign batsmen in the top order. Captain David Warner, wicket-keeper batsman Phil Salt and all-rounder Mitchell Marsh have done somewhat well with the bat but when all three are dismissed early, Delhi’s innings starts to falter. In the last match against Punjab, the Delhi team was heading towards victory but they lost their last eight wickets within 67 runs. However, the Indian bowlers included in the Delhi team have done well. Bowlers played an important role in Delhi’s three out of four victories. Experienced Ishant Sharma is playing his part well while Khaleel Ahmed is also giving him good support. Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Akshar Patel have also bowled economically. Squad: Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan (Captain), Shah Rukh Khan, Matthew Short, Prabhsimran Singh, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma, Gurnoor Singh Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Tyde, Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Singh, Nathan Ellis , Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Brar, Sam Curran, Sikandar Raza, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Mohit Rathi, Shivam Singh. Delhi Capitals: David Warner (Captain), Prithvi Shaw, Mitchell Marsh, Sarfaraz Khan, Aman Hakim Khan, Abhishek Porel (Wicketkeeper Batsman), Akshar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, Kuldeep Yadav, Rovman Powell, Riley Rossouw, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakaria, Mukesh Kumar, Phil Salt, Lungi Engidi, Praveen Dubey, Lalit Yadav, Ripple Patel, Vicky Ostwal, Ishant Sharma, Manish Pandey, Kamlesh Nagerkoti, Yash Dhul. The match will start at 7:30 pm Indian time. (agency)