Rajasthan Royals have won the toss and have opted to field
Sanju Samson: We would like to bowl first, looks a good a wicket to chase on. We are comfortable doing both
Rajasthan Royals have won the toss and have opted to field
Rovman Powell: I think it’s the communication between the captains, coaches and players. Communication goes a far way, communication brings clarity throughout the group and I think that has been a driving force in our success so far. As a batter, you get excited but the important thing is when you get to bat, you do the basic things right. I think it was a simple one to reflect, fortunately I was there at the last, I just missed a full toss in close games like that, you can’t overthink, Bhuvi bowled a great over. Hopefully, the next time I’m out there, I can take my team over the line. There is a bit to prove but it is nothing personal, I’m here to do a job for Rajasthan and I will do that. One thing I like in this team is the way they plan, we as West Indian if we can plan like that, can go into the specific details, that is something that I am looking to take from a personal standpoint and see how can I rub it onto my fellow West Indians.
Pitch report by Deep Dasgupta and Brian Lara: Fourth game here in Delhi and the average score is 249 so far, five out of the six innings have seen scores over 200. One of the reasons is the dimensions of this ground. Today the side boundaries are 59m and 67m, 74m straight hit. Pitches early on here had more grass, now we have more bare patches and a few cracks. There is still some grass cover in the middle of the pitch. I believe it is going to be another high-scoring game
With games and great NRR at hand, both KKR and RR are almost certain for the playoffs. Realistically the other two spots are up for grabs between CSK, SRH, LSG and DC unless the table takes a dramatic turn where 14 points could be enough for qualification.
Full credit to them for winning 4 out of 6 games and bouncing back in grand style when everyone had written them off in the early stages. But they are up against the most consistent sides this season. RR's both loses were separated by 4 wins and in fact they should have won their last game against the Sunrisers as well only to get well ahead of the game and pick up a last-ball shock defeat
Welcome to another vital league stage game as the playoffs inch closer. This is a must-win game for the Delhi Capitals to stay in contention because the maximum they can get to is 16 points from the remaining three games and their inferior NRR only makes life tougher.
Preview by Purnima Malhotra:
Their IPL 2024 campaign hanging by a bare thread, inconsistent Delhi Capitals will host rampaging Rajasthan Royals who have one foot in the playoffs already and would be eager to reclaim their top spot in the standings.
The Capitals have blown hot and cold all throughout, alternating between unbelievably good and poor. Starting their season away from home, DC went down in four of their first-five games before winning four in the next five. Royals, on the other hand, had a long run at no. 1 spot, winning eight of their 10 games which includes two streaks of four victories on the trot. Both teams though are coming off defeats.
Delhi's woes were partly due to injuries that hit their camp, robbing them of the chance to field their strongest XI, and part due to the indifferent form of some of their sure starters. Prithvi Shaw has had a year of two halves, his numbers seeing a constant decline in the second half of his eight games thus far. However, Jake Fraser-McGurk has grabbed his opportunity with both hands and emerged as a silver lining for DC. His scarcely believable strike-rate of 233.33 after six innings is the all-time best in a season (minimum 50 balls faced), and he currently averages over 43 with the bat. Together with captain Rishabh Pant and Tristan Stubbs, the trio has been doing the heavy-lifting with the bat for the side.
The Capitals have also won last two of their three games in Delhi, scoring 220+ on both occasions, which should lift their spirits as they enter the must-win territory to remain in playoffs contention. Two of their remaining three are in the comforts of their home ground. However, the venue's propensity for producing run-fests this year could play right into Royals' hands. RR's top-four are currently aggregating the highest (1453 runs at 48.43) among all 10 teams despite Jos Buttler's lean patches on either side of his two spectacular centuries in run-chases. DC, in comparison, fare eighth.
The two teams are on opposite ends in terms of fast-bowling returns as well. Rajasthan's quicks have been the most economical in the competition at 8.66 while Delhi's are second from bottom, leaking at 11 RPO and averaging 33.78. Even the most economical of DC pacers, Khaleel Ahmed, has averaged 9.47. That said, Delhi do have the upper hand over their Tuesday opponents in one department.
The Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel combo have been pivotal for DC in the bowling department whereas the lacks of returns from the experienced duo of R Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal is one chink in RR's otherwise all-round game. Delhi's spinners have claimed 23 wickets at joint-best strike rate of 18.7 and average 25.95 in IPL 2024 whereas RR's have only 17 in 10 games, and a worrisome average of over 43.
When: Tuesday, May 7 at 19:30 IST
Where: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
What to expect: The average first innings score in Delhi has been a staggering 249 and the overall average at this venue has been 236 in IPL 2024. Expect another high-scoring contest with even square boundaries from the center pitch.
Head to Head: It's 15-13 to RR overall but the tourists only have a 3-5 record at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Royals did win the reverse fixture by 12 runs in Jaipur.
Teams Watch
Delhi Capitals
Injuries & Availability: Head Coach Ricky Ponting confirmed that Ishant Sharma is fit and available for selection tomorrow, and also sounded confident of having David Warner back for the game although a final call on his fitness was to be taken after the team's pre-match training session on Monday evening.
Tactics & Matchups: Sanju Samson's consistency has been a big factor in RR's success this year, but the RR skipper strikes at under 122 against both Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel. The DC spn twins have also dismissed the RR captain three times between them, which makes for an interesting match-up.
Injuries & Availability: No injury concerns to report from the RR camp.
Tactics & Matchups: All three of Delhi's top run-getters - Pant, Stubbs and Fraser-McGurk - are averaging under 20 against legspin in IPL 2024. Having produced flashes of brilliance previously, if Chahal can rediscover his rhythm he can break the back of Delhi's big-hitting middle-order.
Probable XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (c, wk), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, R Ashwin, Trent Boult, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Sharma [Impact sub: Yuzvendra Chahal]
Did you know?
- A six has been hit in every eight legal balls in Delhi in IPL 2024
- A staggering 88.8% of Jake Fraser-McGurk's runs in IPL 2024 have come in boundaries
- All three games in Delhi this season have been won by teams batting first
What they said:
"We know that we are coming up against a very good Rajasthan side, but we know if we play our best cricket, as we have seen in the tournament so far, if we can play our best cricket for 40 overs, then I'll guarantee we'll be hard to beat. It doesn't matter who we play or where we play them, we know we can beat anybody." - DC head coach Ricky Ponting
"When you take over the captain's role, there's a lot that comes with it... what Sanju [Samson] has learned from the last couple of years is managing all that, managing his time managing his energy, leaning on the senior players in the group. And by balancing all that it's got the best out of him... It's been exciting for us as a team to see him get World Cup selection. We're all delighted for him. He's playing beautifully and then hopefully he can just keep leading us through the back end of this tournament.: - RR fast-bowling coach Shane Bond
Delhi Capitals
Rajasthan Royals
