In-form CSK could prove to be too much for winless DC

Delhi Capitals have lost all their last four encounters against Chennai Super Kings, and going by their form in the 2024 Indian Premier League, Rishabh Pant and his men will have to play out of their skin to beat the in-form Men in Yellow on March 31 (Sunday). Chennai have won their first two games with utmost ease, while the Capitals are yet to register a win this season. 

The transition from MS Dhoni to Ruturaj Gaikwad has been as smooth as possible. Meanwhile, Pant is still finding his feet as a batter after returning from a serious injury. Both of Delhi’s defeats have come in the final over. They first failed to defend 174 against Punjab Kings and then fell short by 12 runs in the 186-run chase against Rajasthan Royals.

DC vs CSK Head-to-Head

Overall - Games 29 | DC 10 | CSK 19

In Vizag - Games 1 | DC 0 | CSK 1

Venue details

Only two IPL games have been played in Visakhapatnam since 2016, both of which came in the 2019 edition. We witnessed totals of 162, 165, 147 and 151 but the conditions have become slightly more batting friendly in the last year or two. 

India and Australia played a T20I in Vizag in November 2023 and almost 420 runs were scored in that encounter, with the hosts chasing down a target of 209. Since 2022, Vizag has hosted two T20Is and spinners have proved to be better wicket-taking options than seamers.

They have a strike rate of 16.2 and an average of 25.4, compared to 28.4 and 42.2 respectively of seamers. Howbeit, the latter have been more economical (8.9 vs 9.4).  

Weather forecast

We are sure to have a full game in Visakhapatnam. The temperature is expected to be around 28-29 degree Celsius. And the humidity will be in the range of 70-80%.

Things to watch out for

Dube is no more just a spin hitter

Shivam Dube is one of the best spin bashers in India at the moment, if not the best. However, that’s not it. The oppositions in the past have often targetted him with short deliveries and it worked, but that’s not the case anymore. We are not saying he is great against pace but the left-hander has managed to not get out to them a lot, while going at a strike rate of 145.99.

He has also become a lot smarter in the last couple of years, knowing whom to attack and when to attack. He has an average of close to 40 against pace since 2023. When it comes to short deliveries, the 30-year-old hasn’t always looked comfortable but still managed to score 67 off those 45 balls, getting out only once. A strike rate of 148.9 on deliveries that are supposed to be your weakness isn’t too bad, right? And we all know what happens when you feed spin to him. 

Do Delhi need Bhui, Sumit?

Ricky Bhui and Sumit Kumar haven’t done anything in the first two games. The former has scores of 3 and 0, while batting at number five and three respectively. Meanwhile, Sumit scored 2 off 9 and leaked 19 runs in 1.2 overs in the first match against Punjab. Then against Rajasthan, he didn’t bat or bowl. Delhi don’t have too many options on the bench but they can still try out players like Prithvi Shaw, Kumar Kushagra or Lalit Yadav.  

The opening combination of David Warner and Mitchell Marsh has worked well so far, so it will be tough to slot in Shaw at the top. Delhi, however, can give some game time to Kushagra, for whom they shelled INR 7.2 crore in the auction. The wicketkeeper-batter from Jharkhand doesn’t have a lot of experience but is a good batter of spin bowling. 

Even someone like Lalit, who is a spin-bowling all-rounder, could be used more down the order than Sumit. After all, what’s the harm? It’s not like they are getting anything from Bhui and Sumit. Pant and Anrich Nortje are also returning from serious injuries but Delhi would want them to step up sooner rather than later. 

Probable XIs

DC - David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Abishek Porel (IP), Tristan Stubbs, Kumar Kushagra, Axar Patel, Sumit Kumar/Lalit Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Anrich Nortje, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar (IP)

CSK - Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Rachin Ravindra, Ajinkya Rahane, Daryl Mitchell, Shivam Dube (IP), Ravindra Jadeja, Sameer Rizvi, MS Dhoni (wk), Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Mustafizur Rahman (IP), Maheesh Theekshana/Matheesha Pathirana 

Telecast and streaming details

The match will be live on Star Sports Network and live-streamed on Jio Cinema. The game will start at 7:30 PM, with the toss happening at 7 PM.