NEW DELHI: Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel won the toss and elected to bowl first against Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL clash on Wednesday, banking on early assistance from a fresh delivery.
With both teams fielding strong XIs, the contest promises a balanced battle between bat and ball. However, a notable omission was that of Arjun Tendulkar, who found no place in either the eleven or the bench. Sachin Tendulkar’s son was transferred to LSG before the mini-auction but remains on the sidelines.
Explaining the decision to bowl first, Axar added, “We are going to bowl first. The first match, a new wicket, is a solid red wicket and could help in the first 6 overs. The data says that many matches are won by the team that bats first, but we thought it is the first game and we will bowl.”
He also confirmed Delhi’s overseas combination and added: “Nissanka, Miller, Stubbs and Lungi Ngidi, our four foreign players.”
Delhi Capitals’ playing XI features KL Rahul behind the stumps, along with Pathum Nissanka and Nitish Rana up top. Axar leads the team with all-round responsibilities, supported by power hitters David Miller and Tristan Stubbs in the middle order. Their bowling attack includes Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar and Ngidi, giving them variety in pace and spin.
The Lucknow Super Giants, led by Rishabh Pant, opted for a strong foreign core with Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran and Anrich Nortje.
Pant, who also keeps wickets, looked confident before the match. “I don’t think it matters here on a field like this… I think it’s a whole new energy for sure. You know, we’ve changed our color, logo and definitely the mentality.”
Reflecting on last season’s struggles, he added: “We’d like to learn from last season, but I think the players are really fit and ready again…they’re all willing to go out on the field and just make an impact.”
LSG vs DC Playing XI
Lucknow Supergiants (Playing XI): Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Mohsin Khan, Mohammed Shami, Anrich Nortje, Prince Yadav
Lucknow Super Giants Impact Substitutes: Digvesh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Akshat Raghuvanshi
Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w), Pathum Nissanka, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel(c), Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Vipraj Nigam, Lungi Ngidi, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar
Delhi Capitals Impact Substitutes: Ashutosh Sharma, Auqib Nabi, Sameer Rizvi, Dushmantha Chameera, Karun Nair