Probable XI –
Punjab Kings –
Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul (C and WK), Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Shahrukh Khan, Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith, Murugan Ashwin/Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami
Delhi Capitals –
Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (C and WK), Marcus Stoinis, Lalit Yadav, Chris Woakes, Tom Curran/Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ravichandran Ashwin, Avesh Khan
Small League Combination 1 –
1. Lokesh Rahul
2. Chris Gayle(VC)
3. Shikhar Dhawan(C)
4. Ajinkya Rahane
5. Mayank Agarwal
6. Shahrukh Khan
7. Chris Woakes
8. Marcus Stoinis
9. Mohammad Shami
10. Kagiso Rabada
11. Anrich Nortje
– Shikhar Dhawan looks safest captain pick by looking at his averages of above 35 at venue & H2H matches.
– Taking punt on Chris Gayle as VC considering his averages of 44 & 49 at venue and H2H matches respectively.
– Dropped Rishabh as he has continuous failures against Punjab in the last 9 H2H matches.
– Expecting good knocks from both Mayank & Rahane as they have done well in H2H games.
– Marcus Stoinis can play a good knock if 1-2 top order batters from DC departs early.
– Expecting at least two wickets each from Shami, Rabada & Nortje considering the pace favoured pitch at Wankhede.
Small League Combination 2 –
1. Nicholas Pooran
2. Lokesh Rahul
3. Chris Gayle
4. Shikhar Dhawan
5. Ajinkya Rahane
6. Marcus Stoinis
7. Chris Woakes
8. Deepak Hooda
9. Kagiso Rabada(C)
10. Mohammad Shami(VC)
11. Jhye Richardson
– Rabada & Shami might be good punt C VC picks as they can be lethal at this pace favoured pitch.
– Expecting Pooran to blast in this game as he went out at duck in the last two matches.
– Deepak Hooda can score 30-40 runs easily as he has looked in good touch during the last two matches.
– Expecting wickets from Jhye Richardson as he usually doesn’t go blank in two consecutive matches.
Grand League Combination –
1. Nicholas Pooran
2. Rishabh Pant
3. Ajinkya Rahane(VC)
4. Mayank Agarwal
5. Shahrukh Khan
6. Chris Woakes
7. Marcus Stoinis
8. Deepak Hooda
9. Mohammad Shami
10. Kagiso Rabada
11. Anrich Nortje(C)
– Anrich Nortje can take 2-3 wickets especially while bowling first considering his recent lethal form during International series.
– Ajinkya Rahane might be a good VC as he has good venue & H2H numbers.
– Expecting both Pooran and Mayank to score runs especially if Rahul and Gayle doesn’t do well.
– Rishabh Pant might look to play a top knock in this game to make up for his bad numbers against the opponent.
– Shahrukh & Deepak can give decent points by batting at middle order for Punjab.