The Kings XI Punjab will play the Delhi Daredevils in the 60th game of the Indian Premier League this season. The match will be played at the cricket ground at Dharmasala in Himachal Pradesh, which will be Punjab’s home ground.
Punjab v Delhi odds:
The Kings XI Punjab (8/11 at
Paddy Power) go into the game with two successive wins but their aim is to get five in a row to stand a chance at the playoffs. They beat Mumbai Indians and followed it up with a victory over the Kochi Tuskers in the previous game,
With Virender Sehwag out of the tournament due to injury, Delhi’s (6/5 at
Blue Square) batting is generally weakened – as if it wasn’t already struggling in the tournament. Without their captain and with no motivation left in the tournament, it will be interesting to see whether the side can get anything out of the game.
Ground and Pitch:
This will be the first game that will be played at this venue this season but if one were to go by last year’s statistics, it should be an average-scoring ground with totals of around 150-160 being par for the course.
Player News:
Given Punjab’s two wins in a row, it is difficult to see them make too many changes to their side. Dinesh Karthik’s (5/1 at
Paddy Power) return to form against Kochi will be pleasing but with Adam Gilchrist (7/2 at
Blue Square) and David Hussey (11/2 at
Boylesports) still struggling to get going, the side may still remain under pressure.
Shaun Marsh (10/3 at
BetFred) will continue to hold the key for the Kings XI Punjab though, he would hope that the opening batsmen will do a better job than they have so far in the tournament. Adam Gilchrist’s (7/2 at
Blue Square) captaincy will be feeling the pinch of not scoring too many runs in the tournament, which is why it will be imperative for the Punjab skipper to get a big one under his belt.
The absence of Sehwag was made up by Naman Ojha (4/1 at
BetFred) opening the innings with Dave Warner (3/1 at
Blue Square). Colin Ingram (5/1 at
bet365) also got an opportunity in the previous game but failed. However, he should get another shot in the playing eleven. Slowly, but steadily, Irfan Pathan (10/1 at
BetFred) is coming into his own with the bat and the Daredevils will expect a reasonable contribution from him again.
After the initial promise that Venugopal Rao (6/1 at
Boylesports) had shown in the tournament, his form seems to have tapered off. If he can provide the necessary impetus to the side in the middle of the innings, the loss of Sehwag could partially be filled.
Prediction:
This one could be a tough battle but given Punjab’s motivation to win this game and their winning momentum, they should be favourites here.