We're minutes away from the start. Delhi eye their third straight victory. Punjab would want to give Brett Lee and Katich a perfect send-off. They're needed for the West Indies tour shortly. Sehwag and Gambhir walk out. Punjab's team song, sung by Daler Mehndi, is on in full blast. One slip and a widish second slip in place. Gambhir to take strike to Lee. ON ON.

Toss: Delhi Daredevils have won the toss and will bat first.

Teams: Delhi are unchanged. Punjab have made a couple of changes. Ramnaresh Sarwan makes way for a foreign player, Simon Katich, while Tanmay Srivastava comes in for Sunny Sohal. Srivastava, for the uninitiated, is from Uttar Pradesh, and also one India's most experienced Under-19 players. I needn't tell you much about Katich.

Pitch: The pitch has a layer of thin grass, but nothing to get terribly excited about , say the experts. There will be good bounce and carry but with the sun beating down hard, the batsmen will have their say. I'm still waiting for that tense low-scoring thriller on a sporting pitch (let's count out Eden Gardens). Are you?

Delhi 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag (capt), 3 Shikhar Dhawan, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Manoj Tiwary, 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 Farveez Maharoof, 9 Mohammad Asif, 10 Vijaykumar Yomahesh, 11 Glenn McGrath.

Punjab 1 Karan Goel, 2 Irfan Pathan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Yuvraj Singh (capt), 5 Mahela Jayawardene, 6 Simon Katich, 7 Tanmay Srivatsava, 8 Brett Lee, 9 Piyush Chawla, 10 Sreesanth, 11 VRV Singh

'allo 'allo and welcome to Cricinfo's continuing coverage of the IPL. This is game 13 and the action shifts to Mohali where the Kings XI Punjab take on Delhi Daredevils. I'm Kanishkaa Balachandran, your commentator for this match. Binoy George has the honours with the scoring today.

Delhi are up at No.3 in the points table and man are they a deadly bunch. The most impressive aspect of their performance in their two opening games is that their 'local' talent has carried them through as far as the batting is concerned. Sehwag, Gambhir and Dhawan have clicked collectively and for a change, no Australian batsmen to bail them out of trouble. The other teams seem to be living off the Australians. But hey, they paid hefty bucks to get them didn't they? Anyway, the Delhi middle order remains untested so we'll wait and see if there's a reshuffle in the batting order. We'll bring you news of the teams, toss shortly.

Punjab will fancy their chances now after comprehensively thumping Mumbai. Sreesanth's tears should have dried up by now after that alleged 'thump' from Harbhajan. Legends.

0.1

Lee to Gambhir, no run, good carry to start off with, pitches on the channel outside off and seams back in slightly before reaching the keeper

0.2

Lee to Gambhir, 1 run, comes back inwards and Gambhir clips it very close to the pads on the on side, there's a bit of inward movement for Lee

Now the slips are close to each other, leg slip too in place

0.3

Lee to Sehwag, 1 run, bangs it in short and Sehwag does well to get on his toes and defend that with soft hands to the offside, that allows a quick single

0.4

Lee to Gambhir, 1 run, varies the length by bowling a yorker, Gambhir just manages to get his bat down and keep it out

0.5

Lee to Sehwag, FOUR, Lee loses his line by pitching it too short and wide, Sehwag frees his arms and cuts that over the slips

0.6

Lee to Sehwag, 1 run, much fuller and moving away, he reaches out and places that to third man

1.1

Pathan to Sehwag, 1 wide, Irfan gets aggressive and bowls a bouncer, that sails over Sehwag's arched back, wide called

1.1

Pathan to Sehwag, 1 leg bye, appeal for a leg before! Pitches in line of offstump and comes back in and appears to hit the stumps as Sehwag misses a heave to the on side, replays showed that it would have hit, umpire Shivaram wasn't convinced

1.2

Pathan to Gambhir, 1 run, pitches outside off, he taps that wide of cover

1.3

Pathan to Sehwag, no run, gets one to nip back in and cramp him for room, he gets back and defends back to Pathan

1.4

Pathan to Sehwag, OUT, pitches just short of a length on middle and leg and straightens, Sehwag hops on his toes and tries to whip it the on side but the ball strikes him flush on the pads, umpire Shivaram is convincedd this time, the height is the question there

V Sehwag lbw b Pathan 6 (6b 1x4 0x6) SR: 100.00

1.5

Pathan to Dhawan, no run, poor running, Dhawan taps it towards short cover and Gambhir sets off at the other end for a non existent single, Gambhir was lucky the throw at his end was wide

1.6

Pathan to Dhawan, no run, pitches outside off, he slashes it on the first bounce to slip

2.1

Lee to Gambhir, no run, pitches on a length outside off, he punches it towards point

2.2

Lee to Gambhir, 1 run, excellent running, Gambhir taps it in front of the stumps very softly and calls immediately, Dhawan responds and sets off very quickly

2.3

Lee to Dhawan, OUT, Lee bangs one in short down the leg side and that really climbs on Dhawan as he shapes to hook, replays show the ball brushing the shoulder before reaching Sangakkara, Dhawan was clearly disappointed with Koertzen's decision

S Dhawan c †Sangakkara b Lee 0 (3b 0x4 0x6) SR: 0.00

2.4

Lee to Shoaib Malik, FOUR, classic shot to get off the mark, it was fractionally wide outside off and moving away, he times it crisply past backward point

2.5

Lee to Shoaib Malik, no run, the slower ball, moves away after pitching and beats Malik on the forward prod

2.6

Lee to Shoaib Malik, 1 leg bye, holds the length back on middle and off, he tucks it to the on side

3.1

Pathan to Shoaib Malik, 1 run, taps it softly towards Katich at cover, he has a shy at the non-striker's end and hits the stumps, they steal an overthrow with nobody to back the deflection off the stumps

3.2

Pathan to Gambhir, no run, steps down the track and checks his stroke as he taps it back to the bowler

3.3

Pathan to Gambhir, FOUR, misfield, Pathan cramps him for a bit of room outside off but Gambhir adjusts well and thuds it hard off the bat towards point, Katich misreads the bounce and lets it slip through

3.4

Pathan to Gambhir, FOUR, that was a cracker! Pathan gives him too much width outside off and Gambhir frees his arms and cuts hard past cover, that rocketed off the bat

3.5

Pathan to Gambhir, 1 run, short and wide outside off, he cuts hard but there's protection for him at deep cover

3.6

Pathan to Shoaib Malik, 1 wide, dishes out a bouncer and Malik hooks and misses, umpire Koertzen says that was too high

3.6

Pathan to Shoaib Malik, 1 run, slower ball, he opens the face of the bat and dabs it to third man

Not the noisiest crowd today. Nothing to match Chennai yesterday. There is a brief roar for Sreesanth. All set for blood, sweat and possibly tears. Sree stops short. He talks to himself

4.1

Sreesanth to Shoaib Malik, FOUR, Malik welcomes Sreesanth with a smashing offdrive past mid-off, that was a little too wide outside off

4.2

Sreesanth to Shoaib Malik, 1 run, holds the length back, he gets forward and taps it just in front of mid-off and sets off quickly, the under arm flick just misses the stumps

4.3

Sreesanth to Gambhir, 1 run, fullish and swinging away, he pushes it softly towards point

4.4

Sreesanth to Shoaib Malik, 1 run, goes for the drive through the on side a little too early and ends up getting a thick edge onto his boot, the ball rolls to the offside

4.5

Sreesanth to Gambhir, FOUR, he errs by straying on the pads and that's all too easy for Gambhir as he clips it wide of midwicket off the middle of the bat

4.6

Sreesanth to Gambhir, no run, full and wide outside off and he drives firmly through the line to cover, Sreesanth gets away with that

Here's VRV Singh

5.1

Singh to Shoaib Malik, no run, hits a good length outside off, he punches this to cover

5.2

Singh to Shoaib Malik, no run, holds the length back outside off, he steps down and tries to cream it through the offside but mistimes it to mid-off

5.3

Singh to Shoaib Malik, FOUR, that was a gift outside off, short and wide, not coming through with much pace, he reaches out and slices it high over backward point

5.4

Singh to Shoaib Malik, no run, good comeback, he keeps it short and cramps him for room, Malik attempts a cheeky steer to third man and nearly gets an edge

The stands are filling up now

5.5

Singh to Shoaib Malik, 1 run, Malik walks across his stumps very early before VRV delivers, he flicks it straight to short fine-leg

Fine leg is up for Gambhir

5.6

Singh to Gambhir, OUT, sudden rush of blood for Gambhir as he gives VRV the charge, the ball is pitched short and as a result Gambhir fails to go through with the loft over mid-off and gives Yuvraj an easy catch running back a few paces

G Gambhir c Yuvraj Singh b Singh 18 (14b 3x4 0x6) SR: 128.57

The bowling change works. Manoj Tiwary walks in. Piyush Chawla has the ball

6.1

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, pitches it on middle, no turn, he defends

6.2

Chawla to Tiwary, 1 run, slightly shorter, he hops back and tucks it towards square leg

Slip is taken off

6.3

Chawla to Shoaib Malik, no run, hits him on the pads just over the line of middle stump, there's a stifled appeal from the bowler

6.4

Chawla to Shoaib Malik, 2 runs, steps down the track, it's a googly and he checks his stroke and defends

6.5

Chawla to Shoaib Malik, no run, gets forward and pushes it back to the bowler

6.6

Chawla to Shoaib Malik, 2 wides, slides down the leg side, he loses his direction there

6.6

Chawla to Tiwary, FOUR, gives him width outside off and Malik plays a deft glide past short third man, he looks in good touch, Delhi need him to stick on

Manoj: "The decision of giving out of Dhawan, reminds me of the ICL practice where a team can challenge against three decisions, was a better option."

7.1

Singh to Shoaib Malik, OUT, Delhi are losing the plot here! VRV bangs it in short and wide outside off, Malik eyes a six over third man but doesn't put much power on the stroke and ends up tamely upper-cutting it down Lee's throat at third man

Shoaib Malik c Lee b Singh 19 (17b 3x4 0x6) SR: 111.76

Can Dinesh Karthik bail them out of trouble?

7.2

Singh to Karthik, 1 run, pitches on off and nips back in, he defends very close to his pads, the ball nearly rolls onto the stumps

7.3

Singh to Tiwary, 1 run, VRV bangs it in short and really stifles Tiwary as he hops and fends it off uneasily, he's late to set off for a single and VRV throw at the non-striker's end is off target

7.4

Singh to Karthik, 1 run, keeps it short, he fends it off easily to the on side and sets off

7.5

Singh to Tiwary, 1 run, keeps it short of a length and cuts back in high on Tiwary, he fends it off towards the off side and defends

7.6

Singh to Karthik, no run, tempts him with width outside off and he nearly feathers it through to the keeper as he attempts to dab it down to third man

8.1

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, gets down too early for the sweep and the ball hits him on the pad, Chawla appeals half-heartedly

8.2

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, full and wide outside off, he drives it to cover

8.3

Chawla to Tiwary, 1 run, gives him more width outside off, he reaches out and drives it wide of point

8.4

Chawla to Karthik, 1 run, pitches outside off, he drives to cover

8.5

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, he fails to put away a half volley by driving straight to cover

8.6

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, the googly, well bowled by Chawla as the turn beats Tiwary as he shapes to cut

9.1

Singh to Karthik, 2 runs, pitches on middle and leg, he shuffles and tucks it down to the on side

9.2

Singh to Karthik, 2 runs, he bangs it in short and wide outside off, he can't resist the upper cut but he controls it and places it wide of Lee at third man

9.3

Singh to Karthik, FOUR, that was a real brute of a delivery, really stifled Karthik as he hopped to fend it off, the ball lobbed off his glove and just beat the keeper

9.4

Singh to Karthik, 1 run, good length outside off, he taps it wide of backward point

9.5

Singh to Tiwary, no run, gets back at the crease and taps it to the off side

9.6

Singh to Tiwary, no run, false shot by Tiwary as he gets width outside off and slashes hard and misses

10.1

Chawla to Karthik, SIX, Chawla gives it too much air and dishes out a full toss, Karthik scoops it off the middle of the bat and clears long-off

10.2

Chawla to Karthik, 1 run

10.3

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, cramps him for room outside off, the ball straightens and he slashes and misses

10.4

Chawla to Tiwary, no run

10.5

Chawla to Tiwary, FOUR, full and wide outside off, he leans forward and scoops this over extra cover

10.6

Chawla to Tiwary, 1 run, fullish and wide outside off, he drives past point

Spin from both ends, Yuvraj now

11.1

Yuvraj Singh to Tiwary, 1 run, flights it outside off, he drives through the covers

11.2

Yuvraj Singh to Karthik, FOUR, loops it down the legside and Karthik follows the line early, he gets on his knees and places it wide of short fine-leg

11.3

Yuvraj Singh to Karthik, no run, flighted on middle and leg, he gets down and slogs it wide of midwicket

11.4

Yuvraj Singh to Karthik, 1 run, pitches outside off, he opens the face and steers it wide of short third man

11.5

Yuvraj Singh to Tiwary, 1 run, driven through the line to deep cover

11.6

Yuvraj Singh to Karthik, OUT, Yuvraj pushes it quicker on middle and off and gets it to straighten, Karthik shapes to pull that over square leg and gets a thick inside edge which takes out his legstump

KD Karthik b Yuvraj Singh 24 (14b 2x4 1x6) SR: 171.42

12.1

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, starts off with a googly, he picks it well and defends

12.2

Chawla to Tiwary, FOUR, good shot, gets on his knee early and drags that from outside off and places it wide of deep square leg, there's a despairing dive

12.3

Chawla to Tiwary, no run, pitches outside off, he cuts towards point

12.4

Chawla to Tiwary, 1 run, pitches on middle and leg, he pushes it through the line to long-on

12.5

Chawla to Bhatia, no run, gets this one to straighten and tucks up Bhatia, he manages to defend

12.6

Chawla to Bhatia, 1 run, pitches on middle and leg, he pushes it through the line to long-on

Punjab are happy, they have the upper hand

13.1

Yuvraj Singh to Bhatia, no run, full outside off, the fielder at cover dives and intercepts

13.2

Yuvraj Singh to Bhatia, 1 run, hops back and clips it wide of midwicket

13.3

Yuvraj Singh to Tiwary, 1 wide, slides wide down the leg side

13.3

Yuvraj Singh to Tiwary, no run, pitches on middle and straightens, he can't whip it through the on side

13.4

Yuvraj Singh to Tiwary, 1 run, defends on the front foot, Sanga gets rather chirpy behind the stumps, he wants the batsmen to go for the lofted shots

13.5

Yuvraj Singh to Bhatia, no run, pushed back straight, Yuvraj dives and stops that

13.6

Yuvraj Singh to Bhatia, 1 run, gets back and punches through the line to long-off

Lee returns

14.1

Lee to Bhatia, 1 run, the slower ball, he picks it early and pushes it just in front of mid-off for a quick single

Long-on in place

14.2

Lee to Tiwary, 1 run, slower delivery again, pitches it shorter, he swivels and pulls to deep square leg, that's the 100

14.3

Lee to Bhatia, 1 leg bye, fires in that inswinging yorker and strikes him on the base of the pad outside leg, the ball rolls towards third man

14.4

Lee to Tiwary, FOUR, Lee digs it in short and fractionally wide, he makes room and flat bats it over backward point, effective stroke there

14.5

Lee to Tiwary, 1 run, fuller this time, he stays back at the crease and pushes this down to long-on

14.6

Lee to Bhatia, 1 leg bye, ouch! Lee digs in a nasty bouncer and the ball lobs off the helmet as he takes his eyes off the ball and tries to hook, Bhatia stayed forward for that bouncer

15.1

Sreesanth to Bhatia, 1 run, full and wide outside off, he reaches out and drills it down to deep cover

15.2

Sreesanth to Tiwary, 2 runs, aims for the yorker but dishes out a low full toss, he gets forward and punches it through the line down to deep extra cover

Delhi are struggling to force the pace here

15.3

Sreesanth to Tiwary, 1 leg bye, he walks across his stumps to paddle this past short fine leg but fails to pick the yorker, he tamely tucks it towards midwicket

15.4

Sreesanth to Bhatia, SIX, shot! Sreesanth pitches it on a length for Bhatia to swing his arms and he does so by carting it high over deep midwicket

15.5

Sreesanth to Bhatia, FOUR, Sreesanth comes round the wicket but it doesn't help as Bhatia puts away a low full toss and whips it wide of square leg, he bisects the gap between deep square leg and long leg

15.6

Sreesanth to Bhatia, 1 run, much better, he pitches it on middle, Bhatia clips it wide of midwicket for a single

16.1

Pathan to Bhatia, 1 run, starts off with a yorker on offstump, he gets his bat down and squeezes it out to mid-off

16.2

Pathan to Tiwary, 1 wide, tempts him to go for the wild drive through the covers but the ball it too wide to make contact

16.2

Pathan to Tiwary, 1 run, similar delivery, this time he drives to deep point

16.3

Pathan to Bhatia, OUT, Pathan pitches it bang in line of middle stump and the ball holds its line, Bhatia tries to dab it down ti third man but has no room to work with as the ball clips the top of middle stump

R Bhatia b Pathan 17 (15b 1x4 1x6) SR: 113.33

Maharoof walks in

16.4

Pathan to Maharoof, 1 run, digs it in short, he leans back and upper cuts it on the first bounce to third man

16.5

Pathan to Tiwary, 1 run, walks across his stumps and pushes a full delivery past cover

Pathan is now the leading wicket taker in the IPL with seven wickets

16.6

Pathan to Maharoof, 1 run, fullish outside off, he makes room and carves it on the first bounce to third man

Looks like Delhi will have to settle for a par score unless they blaze in the last three overs

17.1

Singh to Maharoof, 2 runs, makes room and squeezes out a yorker towards point, Katich has a shy at the stumps, a direct hit would have had Maharoof packing but there was nobody to back the throw

17.2

Singh to Maharoof, 1 run, makes room again and squeezes out another yorker to cover

17.3

Singh to Tiwary, FOUR, streaky, but he'll take it, he makes room to slog it through the on side but gets an inside edge which beats the stumps and short fine leg comfortably

17.4

Singh to Tiwary, FOUR, he holds the length back this time but Tiwary makes room and clubs this safely over midwicket, one bounce and four

17.5

Singh to Tiwary, OUT, bangs it in short, it's the slower ball this time, Tiwary tries to flat-bat it over the bowler's head but gets a thick top edge to Yuvraj at mid-on

MK Tiwary c Yuvraj Singh b Singh 39 (34b 6x4 0x6) SR: 114.70

17.6

Singh to Maharoof, no run, ends the over with a fast swinging yorker and Maharoof manages to dig it out

18.1

Lee to Mahesh, 2 runs, the slower ball, he fends it softly towards Katich at short third man, Katich flicks it at the stumps and surprisingly Punjab delay their appeal, Maharoof just gets his back in, third umpire has a look

18.2

Lee to Mahesh, 1 run, gets the swinging yorker on the pads and he just manages to squeeze it out to fine leg, Lee appeals but gets no support

18.3

Lee to Maharoof, FOUR, the slower ball, Lee pitches it on the wrong length on middle and leg and Maharoof makes room and lofts through the line well wide of the long-on fielder

18.4

Lee to Maharoof, 1 run, fast yorker on the pads, he digs it out to the on side

18.5

Lee to Mahesh, 1 run, the yorker outside off this time, he digs it out towards mid-off

18.6

Lee to Maharoof, FOUR, expensive over there by Lee, Maharoof makes room and scoops a fullish delivery just in front of the long-off rope, nobody patrolling the area to get a hand to it

150 up, Delhi will be relieved with that

19.1

Pathan to Mahesh, 1 run, the slower ball, Yomahesh intelligently taps it wide of the bowler and gets off strike

19.2

Pathan to Maharoof, 2 runs, Maharoof makes room again and carves a fullish delivery down to long-off, they run quickly and complete the second run

19.3

Pathan to Maharoof, no run, the slower bouncer, really deceives Maharoof as he withdraws the pull stroke

19.4

Pathan to Maharoof, 1 run, fired on the blockhole outside off, he makes room and digs it out to mid-off

19.5

Pathan to Mahesh, 1 run, another slower ball, he exposes his stumps and punches it down to deep cover

19.6

Pathan to Maharoof, 1 run, OUT, Maharoof makes room and squeezes it out to Jayawardene at long-off, he fumbles and Maharoof scampers for the second run, the throw is fast and flat and Sangakkara whips off the bails with Maharoof well short of his ground

MF Maharoof run out 18 (12b 2x4 0x6) SR: 150.00

Delhi were tested for the first time in the tournament and I suspect they won't be too thrilled with this effort. Tiwary scored 39 but nobody managed to push on and score a half-century. They were limited to a par score thanks to some penetrative bowling. VRV and Irfan deserve credit for that. Do join us shortly for the chase.