Delhi Capitals are back at the Arun Jaitley Stadium as we square up against Rajasthan Royals for our penultimate home game of IPL 2024 on Tuesday at 7:30 PM IST.
Though we lost our previous game to the Kolkata Knight Riders by seven wickets at the Eden Gardens, we still have a shot at the playoffs if we can win our remaining games.
RR had won the reverse fixture earlier this season by 12 runs at Jaipur, but this is a crucial match to keep our playoff hopes alive as we are currently in sixth place in the IPL 2024 points table with 10 points from 11 matches.
Ahead of the match, Rishabh Pant and Co. met with the DC Toli and shared some great moments, making memories of a lifetime.
Players to watch out for:
Rishabh Pant:
Our skipper, Rishabh Pant, has been in excellent touch in IPL 2024, carrying the DC batting on his shoulders. Pant has top-scored for us this season, amassing 398 runs from 11 matches at an average of 44.22 and a strike rate of 158.56.
He has scored three fifties this season with a highest score of 88* coming against Gujarat Titans in our four-run win at Delhi. Pant also had great success behind the stumps, collecting 14 dismissals from 11 games.
Pant had an excellent season this year, for which he has been rewarded with a place in the 15-member Indian team for the T20 World Cup, to be held in the West Indies and the United States of America.
Tristan Stubbs:
Tristan Stubbs has been the go-to finisher on our side, striking at an unbelievable rate of 185.90 in IPL 2024. He has scored 277 runs from 10 outings to the crease, including two half-centuries, and averages 55.40 this season.
Stubbs has been our second-highest run-getter in IPL 2024, finishing games with aplomb, and remaining unbeaten on five of the 10 occasions. Stubbs will be looking to make amends for his performance in the last match, where he could manage only four runs off seven balls.
Jake Fraser-McGurk:
Jake Fraser-McGurk has taken IPL 2024 by storm. This swashbuckling opener has given bowlers sleepless nights with his willow-wielding. In just six matches, he has changed the power-hitting dynamics, scoring his runs at an astonishing rate of 233.33.
The 22-year-old Australian has scored 259 runs from six games at an average of 43.16, including three fifties. His best effort came against Mumbai Indians at Delhi when he smashed 84 runs off just 27 balls, of which 80 came in boundaries.
Fraser-Mcgurk will look to do what he does best, just whack the ball to all corners of the park and get DC off to a fantastic start.
Axar Patel:
Axar Patel has starred for us in IPL 2024 giving performances with both bat and ball consistently. In the last match to KKR, Axar was our most successful bowler picking up 2/25 in four overs, conceding runs at just over six per over.
Axar has picked up nine wickets from 11 matches in IPL 2024 at an excellent economy rate of 7.24, a commendable achievement as the batters have gone hammer and tongs this season.
He has also scored 149 runs giving us useful contributions with the bat. With nine catches to his name, which is the joint-highest for any outfield player in this IPL, he is truly our three-dimensional player on the field.
Kuldeep Yadav:
Kuldeep Yadav has picked up 12 wickets from only eight matches in IPL 2024 striking every 15.5 balls. The left-arm wrist spinner along with Axar Patel had KKR in a web for a brief period during the chase as he extracted turn and bounce from the Eden wicket.
Though he finished wicketless, he conceded only 34 runs off his four overs. Kuldeep’s batting came to the fore for DC against KKR, as we struggled at 111/8. He top-scored for us with 35 off 26 balls, his best individual effort in the IPL. It is also the second-best effort by any batter batting at number nine or below in the IPL.
Kuldeep added a combined 42 runs for the ninth and tenth wicket to take us to a respectable total of 153/9.
Key Matchups:
Mukesh Kumar vs Yashasvi Jaiswal
Our pacer Mukesh Kumar has dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal in both the instances he has bowled to him. In two matches, Jaiswal managed only seven runs off the nine balls he faced before being sent back by Mukesh, including in our last game against RR in March, where Mukesh cleaned up Jaiswal with a beauty.
If Mukesh can keep Jaiswal quiet or get the better of him then this will define the course of the match as the left-hander looks to be in good touch lately after a silent start to IPL 2024.
Axar Patel vs Riyan Parag
Axar Patel has dominated this mouth-watering duel over Riyan Parag. In five innings when they have come face-to-face, Axar has conceded only 23 runs from 26 balls and dismissed Parag once as well.
The contest could shape up based on how Axar keeps Parag, RR’s best batter this season, quiet. The last time they met, Axar gave away just 12 runs off 10 balls against Parag, with his four overs going only for 21 runs along with a wicket.
David Warner vs Trent Boult
David Warner has never been dismissed by Trent Boult in the IPL. Both left-handers have faced each other in eight matches with Warner scoring 75 runs from 58 balls without giving away his wicket.
This top-of-the-order clash becomes very crucial for us with Warner’s experience coming to the fore as the left-arm pacer has been in good form this IPL picking up frequent dismissals in the powerplay.
Where To Watch:
Match Details: May 7, 7:30 PM IST | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
Watch LIVE: Star Sports / JioCinema
