PBKS' chance to go to the head of the class
With the race for a top-two finish still wide open, PBKS are in control of their destiny
Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya have been dazzling at the top for Punjab Kings • Associated Press
Big picture: Punjab's uncrowned kings
Punjab Kings (PBKS) were 122 for 1 in 10.1 overs when their match against Delhi Capitals (DC) in Dharamsala was aborted on May 8, and IPL 2025 was suspended for a week. The two teams will replay that game on Saturday, but this time at a neutral venue Jaipur, where a victory for PBKS will take them to the top of the points table.
PBKS had held a pre-season camp in Dharamsala to get acclimatised to their second home ground. But now they will play two crucial games at a third "home" venue. Their only advantage is that their previous game, against Rajasthan Royals, was also here, while DC are yet to play in Jaipur this season.
While PBKS have qualified for the playoffs, the race for a top-two finish is still open and defeats for Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the last two days have left them in a good position. If they win their remaining two games, they will finish No. 1.*
This is the first time since 2014 that PBKS have qualified for the playoffs. And this revival has been led by their uncapped Indian batters. Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya have given them explosive starts, Nehal Wadhera has played impactful knocks in the middle order and Shashank Singh has finished well towards the end. Add captain Shreyas Iyer to it and you have five batters with over 250 runs at a strike rate of over 150. They are the first team in IPL history to have five such batters in a season.
DC are now out of the race for the playoffs. They had started strongly, with five wins in six games. But then they had a reversal of fortunes and could win only one of their next seven. However, given how important this game is for PBKS, they will not take DC lightly.
Form guide
Punjab Kings WWWLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Delhi Capitals LLLLW
Delhi Capitals LLLLW
In the spotlight: Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul
Shreyas Iyer is the first captain to lead three IPL teams into the playoffs. He did it with DC in successive seasons, in 2019 and 2020, and led Kolkata Knight Riders to the title last year. Now he has done it with PBKS. With the bat, he has 435 runs at a strike rate of 174.69, which is almost 30 points higher than his strike rate last season. His strike rate of 182.19 in the non-powerplay overs is second only to Nicholas Pooran's 211.51.
Like Shreyas, KL Rahul too has been out of India's T20I side for a while now. Like Shreyas, he too has upped his strike rate this season. Unlike Shreyas, not being the captain seems to have brought the best out of him. Leading Lucknow Super Giants last year, he scored 520 runs at 136.12. This year, he is on 504 at 148.67 with one game to go. Can he ensure DC finish on a positive note?
Team news and likely XIIs
Shreyas did not field in the last game because of a finger injury. If things have not improved, he may once again play as Impact Player. Meanwhile, Josh Inglis, Marcus Stoinis and Kyle Jamieson have (re)joined the squad. Inglis and Jameison could be straight swaps for Mitchell Owen and Xavier Bartlett, but picking one between Stoinis and Azmatullah Omarzai might not be as simple.
Punjab Kings (probable): 1 Priyansh Arya, 2 Prabhsimran Singh, 3 Josh Inglis (wk), 4 Shreyas Iyer (capt), 5 Nehal Wadhera, 6 Marcus Stoinis/Azmatullah Omarzai, 7 Shashank Singh, 8 Marco Jansen, 9 Kyle Jamieson, 10 Harpreet Brar, 11 Arshdeep Singh, 12 Yuzvendra Chahal
Axar Patel did not train on the eve of the match as he is still recovering from the illness that forced him to miss the last game. If he remains unavailable, DC may give seam-bowling allrounder Madhav Tiwari another chance.
Delhi Capitals (probable) 1 KL Rahul, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Abishek Porel (wk), 4 Tristan Stubbs, 5 Sameer Rizvi, 6 Ashutosh Sharma, 7 Axar Patel (capt)/Madhav Tiwari, 8 Vipraj Nigam, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Mustafizur Rahman, 12 Mukesh Kumar
The big question
Pitch and conditions
The average first-innings score at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium this IPL has been 200. So expect a high-scoring game once again. During the daytime, there is a warning for excessive heat. While it will be cooler in the evening, the mercury will still hover around 36°C.
Key stats
- Axar has favourable match-ups against Prabhsimran and Inglis. Against Prabhsimran, he has conceded only 24 runs in 26 balls in the IPL while dismissing him once. And he has dismissed Inglis twice in 13 balls in all T20s while giving away just ten runs. So if he is fit to play, he could open the bowling.
- Shreyas has a strike rate of only 110.00 (33 runs in 30 balls, one dismissal) against Mustafizur Rahman in all T20 cricket.
- Rahul has struggled against Arshdeep Singh (31 runs off 25 balls, two dismissals) in the IPL but has a strike rate of 150.60 (125 off 83, one dismissal) against Yuzvendra Chahal.
- Chahal has had the upper hand against Faf du Plessis: 44 runs in 50 balls, three dismissals.
Quotes
"I'm not on the selection panel but I would expect that we're going to pick our best team to win tomorrow. I think it's important for us as a group to finish well and put ourselves in a position to win the match. I would have thought if it's a lineball decision, that [trying new plyers] may happen, but generally speaking we'll look at their team, look at the wicket today, which looks an absolute belter, and pick our best team to win the match and finish strongly, which is what all of our group wants."
Assistant coach Matthew Mott on whether DC will try new faces
Assistant coach Matthew Mott on whether DC will try new faces
*Updated after the match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad
Hemant Brar is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo