IPL 2026: Axar Patel Wins Toss, DC Bowl vs PBKS in Must-Win Clash

After winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, Axar Patel said that the team has struggled in key moments across batting, bowling, and fielding. He added that the team has not played badly overall but needs to improve in decisive situations. Axar said they will focus on playing their natural brand of cricket without worrying too much about the result. He also noted that the pitch looks fresh and the new ball may offer some movement, which influenced the decision to bowl first.

"We will be bowling. That's the thing that's going right (winning the toss), in the matches, we haven't won those crucial moments, either with bat, ball or in the field, otherwise we haven't played that badly. We will play our brand of cricket and don't worry about the result. Win or lose, we'll look to play a good brand of wicket. It's a fresh wicket, the new ball might do a bit and we want to let them bat first," Axar said at the toss presentations.

Punjab Kings had a strong start to the season, winning their first six matches. However, they have since lost three games in a row in the second half of the campaign. Led by Shreyas Iyer, they will be aiming to bounce back, take two important points, and move to the top of the table after they clash with the Delhi Capitals. Currently, they are placed fourth with 13 points after six wins in 10 matches so far.

On the other hand, the Delhi Capitals are under pressure and need a win to stay in the race for a top-four finish. With only three matches left in their season, another defeat against Punjab would knock them out of playoff contention. As a result, they go into this match in a must-win situation. Currently, DC are placed eighth with four wins in 11 matches.

PBKS vs DC playing 11s

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.

DC Impact Sub options: Ashutosh Sharma, Sameer Rizvi, Tripurana Vijay, Pathum Nissanka, Vipraj Nigam.

Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh(w), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer(c), Suryansh Shedge, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Ben Dwarshuis, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

PBKS Impact Sub options: Harpreet Brar, Yash Thakur, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Pravin Dubey.

- ANI