Match 4 of this year’s Indian Premier League brings us a clash between the Delhi Capitals and the Lucknow Super Giants at the Dr YSR Reddy ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on March 24.
For the game, here are our preview and predictions.
Indian Premier League 2025 | Match 4: Delhi Capitals vs Lucknow Super Giants | 19:30 IST, March 24
This is a clash rife with subplots. Ex-Capitals skipper Rishabh Pant faces his former side for the first time, that too as a captain, while the Super Giants are facing an old player of their own in KL Rahul.
Having failed to make the playoffs in each of their last three seasons, DC used the mega auction to refresh and re-tool and front a new-look side this year. Star all-rounder Axar Patel has been named captain, with veteran Faf du Plessis made vice-captain to help him bed in smoothly into his new role.
The Capitals have also improved their bowling lineup with key additions like Mitchell Starc and T Natarajan. Starc played a big role during the playoffs for the Kolkata Knight Riders last season, while Natarajan was the lead death-overs specialist for the SunRisers Hyderabad. Add to this duo the likes of Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Mukesh Kumar, and DC have on their hands a formidable bowling lineup.
LSG, on the other hand, used quite a different approach during the mega auction. They packed their batting order with quality batters like Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant, Nicholas Pooran, and David Miller, but their lower-order power-hitting could be a concern if both Ayush Badoni and Shahbaz Ahmed fail to deliver.
That said, LSG’s biggest concern at present is their injury-riddled bowling attack. For this game, they will be without the services of Mayank Yadav, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, and Mohsin Khan, which alone tips the scale heavily in the Capitals’ favour.
Looking at the two matches played at this venue last year, on both occasions the team batting first won the game, with both seamers and spinners taking wickets. But the teams batting first posted totals of 191 and 272, so it’s safe to say batters will find a lot of joy if they apply themselves correctly.
Both DC and LSG have played each other five times in the IPL, with the latter leading the head-to-head battle 3-2. We back DC to level the proceedings with a win here.
Fantasy XI: Abishek Porel, Nicholas Pooran (c), KL Rahul (vc), Rishabh Pant, Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis, Axar Patel, Mukesh Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Avesh Khan, T Natarajan
Venue: Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam
Winners Prediction: Delhi Capitals
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