New Delhi: Delhi Capitals captain Akshar Patel won the toss and elected to bowl first in their IPL clash against Lucknow Supergiants on Wednesday, with early support from a fresh pitch. With strong fielding XIs from both teams, the contest promises a balanced battle between bat and ball. However, one notable omission was Arjun Tendulkar, who did not find a place in the playing XI or the bench. Sachin Tendulkar’s son was traded to LSG before the mini-auction but is away.
Explaining the decision to bowl first, Axar added, “We will bowl first. First match, fresh wicket, it is a red solid wicket and can help in the first 6 overs. Data says that the team batting first has won many matches, but we thought this is the first match and we will bowl. He also confirmed Delhi’s overseas combination, “Nisanka, Miller, Stubbs and Lungi Ngidi, our four overseas players.”Behind KL Rahul Stump, Patham Nissanka and Nitish Rana are at the top of Delhi Capitals’ playing XI. Axar is leading the team with all-round duties, supported by power hitters David Miller and Tristan Stubbs in the middle order. Their bowling attack includes Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar and Ngidi, who give them variety in terms of pace and spin.Led by Lucknow Supergiants Rishabh Pantopted for a strong overseas corps consisting of Aidan Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran and Enrich Nortje. Pant, who is also wicket-keeping, looked confident ahead of the match. “I think it doesn’t matter here on a wicket like this… I think it’s a whole new energy. You know, we’ve changed our colors, our logo, and definitely our mindset.Reflecting on last season’s struggles, he added, “We would love to learn from last season, but I think the bowlers are really fit and ready again…everyone is ready to go on the field and just make an impact.”
LSG vs DC Playing XI
Lucknow Supergiants (Playing XI): Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (W/C), Ayush Baduni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Chaudhary, Mohsin Khan, Mohammad Shami, Enrich Noertje, Prince YadavLucknow Supergiants Impact Subs: Digvesh Rathi, Avish Khan, Himmat Singh, Shehbaz Ahmed, Akshit RaghuvanshiDelhi Capitals (Playing XI): KL Rahul (W), Patham Nissanka, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel (C), Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Vipraj Nigam, Lungi Ngidi, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh KumarBelow are the effects of Delhi Capitals: Ashutosh Sharma, Aqib Nabi, Sameer Rizvi, Dushmantha Chamera, Karuna Nair
