Inconsistent DC seek home comforts against dominant PBKS

Struggling to put their IPL 2026 campaign back on track, Delhi Capitals return to the comforts of home but face an uphill task as they take on an unbeaten Punjab Kings on Saturday. After starting the season with back-to-back wins, DC have lost three of their last four matches; their only victory in that stretch was a penultimate-ball thriller in Bengaluru. Consequently, they have slid to sixth in the standings as they hit the halfway mark of a stuttering campaign.

Consistency in the batting department continues to elude the Capitals, even though they have managed to put three wins on the board. KL Rahul has rediscovered form after an indifferent start, while Pathum Nissanka's returns have been a mixed bag – three quickfire 40s offset by three single-digit scores. Top-order instability remains a concern, with DC trying three different batters at No. 3 so far. Collectively, they average a modest 14.66 in that position. Nitish Rana was even dropped before responding with a fifty on his return in the last match. Sameer Rizvi's form has tapered off after back-to-back PoTM awards early in the season, and skipper Axar Patel is yet to make a telling contribution with the bat. A complete, collective performance is still awaited.

Lungi Ngidi has spearheaded the bowling attack impressively, ensuring Delhi have not felt the absence of Mitchell Starc yet. However, concerns are mounting in the spin department. Kuldeep Yadav and Axar have managed only 10 wickets between them in seven games in Delhi since the start of IPL 2025, and the team will need the experienced duo to step up. With fixtures against the current top three looming, DC must elevate their game significantly to stay in the hunt for qualification.

Punjab, meanwhile, are sitting pretty at the top of the table with 11 points from six matches (one washout). Almost everything they have touched has turned to gold. Their batting unit has fired on all cylinders, chasing down 200-plus targets with ease on multiple occasions. They have also posted the highest total of the season and defended it convincingly. Arshdeep Singh's return to form has further bolstered the bowling unit, which also saw an unlikely contributor emerge in part-timer Shashank Singh.

Operating like a well-oiled machine, PBKS have few concerns at the moment, aside from some sloppy catching in their previous outing. They walk into the contest as overwhelming favourites, and Delhi will need to conjure a near-flawless performance to halt their momentum and revive their own faltering campaign.

When: DC vs PBKS, Saturday, April 25, at 3:30 PM IST

Where: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi

What to expect: Temperatures soaring into early 40s for the afternoon game. Skewed boundary sizes with pitch no. 6 again in use tomorrow but a high-scoring game on the cards nonetheless.

Head-to-head: It has been quite neck to neck for the two teams – an even 17-all in 34 matches in IPL history; at the venue the teams have each won six and incidentally, since 2023, the two teams' record is 2-all.

Injuries & Availability: Rehan Ahmed has linked up with the squad but Starc is yet to arrive after Cricket Australia cleared him to participate in the league. The Australian pacer is expected to play starting May 1.

Tactics & Matchups: Arshdeep Singh may have rediscovered his wicket-taking knack after an expensive start to the season, but he's facing a line-up that loves scoring off him. Nissanka (178.57), Stubbs (158.13) and Miller (158.97) have all been fairly explosive against the left-armer in the shortest format.

Probable XII: Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Axar Patel (c), Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan

Injuries & Availability: Cooper Connolly, who had left for Cricket Australia's fitness tests in the six-day break, is back and available for Saturday's game.

Tactics & Matchups: Against Delhi's primary spinners, the PBKS skipper has the upper hand. Shreyas Iyer strikes at 173.68 against Kuldeep Yadav and at 151.92 against his counterpart Axar Patel, making this a fascinating middle-overs sub-plot to watch out for.

Probable XII: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Marcus Stoinis, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Vijaykumar Vyshak

• Shreyas Iyer has scored 200 runs in five innings against DC, at a strike-rate of 144.92 and two fifties included.
• Delhi Capitals have won all six tosses and have only chased in IPL 2026 so far.

"It has seemed worse because we've been chasing every game. The other day we lost three wickets in an over and we pretty much didn't bat very well, but we still made 190 something. Yes, we haven't had that perfect innings but on a bad day, we have won three out of six. Even when we've lost, we've still scored 190. We know there's been a couple of small moments here and there in the games but we are scoring these big scores so we're not too worried. Everyone's really positive and everyone's batting well, so that's quite exciting." – Tristan Stubbs on DC's batting woes

"Yes, he's very much available. He just went [back to Australia] and he's come back [after some fitness tests]. He's very much ready and raring to go because I think he's somebody who is in his first year in the IPL. In his first year in the Indian conditions, he's responded really well and he's a great kid. He's definitely a player who's looking forward for every game and is very keen to perform for the side." – PBKS spin coach Sairaj Bahutule on Cooper Connolly's availability