Kings XI Punjab captain Glenn Maxwell needs to get going. PTIMohali: Struggling teams Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab take on each other in an IPL match here on Sunday as they desperately seek to get back to winning ways to stay in the hunt for a play-offs berth.
With three wins from eight games, Punjab are placed at sixth spot while Delhi are at the bottom of the league table with just two wins from seven games.
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For Delhi, it would be a do-or-die match as a loss would virtually end their already wafer-thin chances of making it to the play-offs. Punjab are a bit better off, but a slip up will also put them in a difficult situation to qualify for the last-four stage.
Both Punjab and Delhi come into this match having been comprehensively beaten in their last games by Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders respectively.
The Glenn Maxwell-led Punjab missed the services of in-form Hashim Amla -- who was down with a hamstring injury -- as they fell short by 26 runs while chasing a formidable target of 208.
They will, however, take solace from the fact that Shaun Marsh looked in good touch and played a solid knock of 84.
Punjab will have to put up an all-round show if they are to keep their chances alive in the competition, which they have never won so far. The home fans will be eagerly awaiting big knock from Maxwell, who got out for a duck against SRH.
Punjab have been an inconsistent side over the years in the IPL and they yet again failed to impress against SRH with Marsh being the lone player to put up a good fight.
Meanwhile, Delhi have come into this match after a string of losses, their last one against KKR in Kolkata on Friday. Another loss will virtually bring curtains down on their campaign in IPL-10.
Batting first, Delhi posted a modest total of 160/6 against the table-toppers when at least 180 looked possible at one stage.
Despite opener Sanju Samson's 38-ball 60-run effort and Shreyas Iyer's 47 off 34 balls, Delhi's middle order batsmen fell cheaply which restricted their scoring.
Prior to their match against KKR, Delhi witnessed a batting collapse against Mumbai Indians while chasing a target of 143 runs as they could manage just 128/7 in 20 overs.
For Delhi, it will be important to have a consistent show in their batting. They have had good starts in their innings and their losses against Kolkata, Hyderabad and Mumbai have been primarily due to their inability to force the pace during middle overs.
Sanju, who scored a century early in the tournament, and Rishabh Pant have contributed in some games, but the side will need their top order to fire against Punjab. Iyer will also be crucial for the visitors if they have to pile up a big total.
In the bowling department, South African Chris Morris has to get support from skipper Zaheer Khan and Pat Cummins.
Amit Mishra, who gave away 36 runs in 3 overs against KKR, will look to do what young Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan (4-0-16-1) did for Sunrisers against Punjab here.
The teams (from): Kings XI Punjab: Glenn Maxwell (capt), David Miller, Manan Vohra, Hashim Amla, Shaun Marsh, Darren Sammy, Wriddhiman Saha, Nikhil Naik, Ishant Sharma, Armaan Jaffer, Martin Guptill, Eoin Morgan, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Arman Jaffer, Anureet Singh, Mohit Sharma, K.C. Cariappa, Pradeep Sahu, Swapnil Singh, T. Natrajan, Matt Henry, Varun Aaron, Axar Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Gurkeerat Mann, Rahul Tewatia.
Delhi Daredevils: Zaheer Khan (capt), Mohammad Shami, Shahbaz Nadeem, Jayant Yadav, Amit Mishra, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Rishabh Pant, C.V. Milind, Khaleel Ahmed, Pratyush Singh, Murugan Ashwin, Aditya Tare, Shashank Singh, Ankit Bawane, Navdeep Saini, Corey Anderson, Angelo Mathews, Pat Cummins, Kagiso Rabada, Chris Morris, Carlos Brathwaite, Sam Billings.
Match starts at 4 pm
