Can Delhi Capitals turn things around with a rapid one-match turnaround after their painful loss to Punjab Kings, who chased down a world-record 265 with more than an over to spare? In the IPL\u2019s relentless rhythm, they\u2019ll have to. Delhi can\u2019t afford to linger on the margins, particularly with second-placed Royal Challengers Bengaluru arriving soon. By the halfway stage, DC sit with more defeats than wins, with every one of their four losses coming in their most recent five matches\u2014following a promising beginning to their IPL 2026 campaign. The most recent setback at home came against the table-toppers PBKS, where Delhi posted a massive total but ultimately saw their bowling and fielding collectively fall short, despite a late lift from their batters. Lungi Ngidi\u2019s unusual injury on Saturday also disrupted their bowling plans. With Mitchell Starc ruled out until the start of next month, the worry around an already uneven pace unit has only grown.<\/p>\n
Injuries and form issues may have left Delhi hurting and exposed, but they can\u2019t keep dropping points as the season moves into its more demanding stretch. For RCB, the timing couldn\u2019t be better to settle scores from the reverse meeting while also strengthening their push for a top-two finish. Virat Kohli remains firmly in the hunt for the Orange Cap, yet this RCB side has consistently benefited from a spread of contributions rather than relying on one mainstay. Devdutt Padikkal\u2019s steady run of performances and Rajat Patidar\u2019s aggressive middle-overs batting have given the top order and middle stage more stability and punch, making the batting lineup harder to unsettle.<\/p>\n
If RCB have an edge anywhere, it\u2019s likely in the bowling department. Led by the economical Bhuvneshwar Kumar and boosted by the return of Josh Hazlewood, their attack appears better positioned to target Delhi\u2019s batting vulnerabilities. With conditions expected to deliver plenty of runs, the contest could tilt on how well RCB manage their overs\u2014staying disciplined with the ball and executing under pressure\u2014especially with Virat Kohli\u2019s Delhi in mind.<\/p>\n
When:<\/b> Monday, April 27 at 7:30 PM IST<\/p>\n
Where:<\/b> Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi<\/p>\n
What to expect:<\/b> Another high-scoring affair. Since IPL 2023, the average first-innings total in Delhi has been 200.<\/p>\n
Head-to-head:<\/b> RCB currently hold the upper hand, leading 20-13 (with one no-result) from 34 meetings. Since 2023, though, the rivalry has been tightly balanced, with each team winning three matches. At Kotla, Delhi have managed only four victories against RCB, who have won seven times at the venue.<\/p>\nTeams Watch<\/h2>\n
Delhi Capitals<\/h3>\n
Injuries & Availability:<\/b> Lungi Ngidi has returned to the team hotel after being cleared of any serious injury, but he is not expected to be available immediately. Among the options in reserve, Kyle Jamieson and Dushmantha Chameera are the most likely like-for-like replacements.<\/p>\n
Tactics & Matchups:<\/b> Jitesh Sharma has found it difficult to get going against Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel, managing only 32 and 15 runs respectively, with strike rates of 110.34 and 78.94. Together, the DC spin pairing has accounted for the wicketkeeper four times in T20s, setting up an intriguing battle during the middle overs.<\/p>\n
Probable XII:<\/b> Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (C), Kyle Jamieson\/Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan, Auqib Nabi<\/p>\nRoyal Challengers Bengaluru<\/h3>\n
Injuries & Availability:<\/b> Phil Salt has been ruled out of the Delhi match, but Rasikh Dar looked fit and sharp during training the day before the game.<\/p>\n
Tactics & Matchups:<\/b> In his debut IPL spell, Pathum Nissanka has been inconsistent, with his dismissal often arriving within the Powerplay. On Monday, he\u2019ll face Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has dismissed him three times in four T20 meetings, conceding just 22 runs off 24 balls\u2014something RCB will hope to turn into an early advantage. Bhuvneshwar has also dismissed KL Rahul and Nitish Rana twice each across all T20s.<\/p>\n
Probable XII:<\/b> Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (C), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salim Dar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma<\/p>\n \u201cKrunal Pandya is a player that this game is going to remember for a long time. He\u2019s doing something that has not been done before, pushing the boundaries of what finger-spin means. He\u2019s bowling deliveries that people really couldn\u2019t fathom a few years ago and he\u2019s becoming a master at it and he\u2019s using it very cleverly when the situation demands and he\u2019s using that as a strength of his to put pressure back on the person that he\u2019s bowling against. It\u2019s actually quite interesting to see how he goes about it mentally as well. He\u2019s not someone who\u2019s just doing it because it looks cool. He knows that given the moment when he does want to use it, it does create a doubt in the batter and a lot of the times delivers the result that he wants out of that ball.\u201d<\/p>\n Dinesh Karthik<\/b>, RCB batting coach, on Krunal Pandya\u2019s success<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Can Delhi Capitals turn things around with a rapid one-match turnaround after their painful loss to Punjab Kings, who chased down a world-record 265 with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":5574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"DC vs RCB IPL Update: Quick Fix After Punjab Loss","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"DC vs RCB IPL update: After a demoralising Punjab Kings defeat, can Delhi Capitals regroup fast and stop RCB\u2019s momentum in their next match?","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\nDid you know?<\/h3>\n
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What they said:<\/h3>\n