Punjab Kings (PBKS) take on the Delhi Capitals (DC) in match 55 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the picturesque Dharamshala Cricket Stadium on Monday, May 11.
PBKS, who were at the summit of the points table sometime back, now find themselves at the 4th spot after losing their last three matches with 13 points from 10 matches.
On the other hand, DC are on the brink of elimination after facing defeats in five of their last six matches. They are in 8th position in the standings with only 8 points from 11 matches.
A healthy opening stand is the cornerstone of a successful T20 team in modern cricket, given the mammoth scores teams post in the powerplay, but DC's opening pair of KL Rahul and Pathum Nissanka have been quite inconsistent, leading to the dismal show with the bat.
While KL Rahul has churned out good scores at a brisk pace, his partner, Pathum Nissanka, has been erratic with the bat. The Sri Lankan opener has made 278 runs in 10 matches at an average of 27.80 and a strike rate of 158.86.
Though Pathum Nissanka slammed a fifty in the last match, the DC management has finally run out of patience with Nissanka as they replaced him with Abhishek Porel for the must-win against PBKS. The decision has allowed Axar Patel to go with South African veteran David Miller in the middle order.
If DC lose this match, they'll become the third team to get eliminated from the tournament after LSG and MI.
PBKS Vs DC, IPL 2026: Playing XI
Delhi Capitals: KL Rahul(w), Abishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel(c), Madhav Tiwari, Mukesh Kumar, Auqib Nabi Dar, Mitchell Starc, Lungi Ngidi
Impact Players: Pathum Nissanka, Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Tripurana Vijay
