After a morale-boosting victory in Delhi, ​​our boys move to the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamshala. We host Delhi Capitals (DC) in our penultimate home match of TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 on Wednesday, May 17.

Must-Win Clash:

Our team needs to continue the winning momentum over DC to keep our hopes alive for the playoffs.

While defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) became the first team to qualify for the playoffs this season, as many as seven teams are vying for the remaining three spots.

On the other hand, DC are already knocked out of the playoff race. 

A big win on Wednesday will improve our chances of finishing in the top four.

Edge In Northern Derby:

Our boys will head into another must-win game brimming with confidence after a 31-run win over David Warner-led DC at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on May 13.

Put into bat, Prabhsimran Singh slammed his maiden TATA IPL hundred to power us to 167/7 in 20 overs. Later, Harpreet Brar bagged four wickets to help us restrict DC to 136/8 in their allotted overs.

We have won 16 of the 31 matches played against our Northern rival.

At Dharamshala, our boys have won two of the three matches against DC so far.

What To Expect: 

Teams batting second have won six of the last 10 matches at the HPCA Stadium.

Additionally, toss-winning captains have opted to chase in seven of the last 10 fixtures at this ground.

The average first innings score at this venue is 139, while the average winning score is 146.

Players To Watch Out For:

Prabhsimran Singh:

In our last fixture against DC, our swashbuckling opener, Prabhsimran Singh became only the seventh uncapped player to score a century in TATA IPL. The 22-year-old smashed 103 off 65 balls laced with 10 fours and six maximums.

Prabhsimran is the second-highest run-getter for us this season. He has amassed 334 runs in 12 innings at an impressive strike rate of 153.91. Our dashing batter will look to continue his scintillating form in Dharamshala.

Arshdeep Singh:

Our bowling spearhead, Arshdeep Singh, will be playing his 50th match in the TATA IPL. Considering the pacer-friendly nature of the pitch, Arshdeep will play a crucial role for us.

The 24-year-old has also been the leading wicket-taker for us this season having picked up 16 wickets in 12 matches at an average of 16.81. He will look to bag early wickets to put pressure on the DC batting line-up.

Key Match-ups:

Shikhar Dhawan vs Ishant Sharma:

The two veterans of Indian cricket locking horns will be an exciting contest to watch out for. Dhawan has scored 36 runs off the 30 deliveries bowled by Ishant in TATA IPL so far. The tall pacer has dismissed Dhawan only twice so far.

Rahul Chahar vs Mitchell Marsh:

The face-off between Rahul Chahar and Mitchell Marsh could play a significant role in the upcoming clash. Our leg-spinner has got the better of Marsh once in this campaign. The Australian all-rounder has scored just nine runs in two innings against our lead spinner.

Sher Squad, keep rooting for our boys! We are all set for another pulsating encounter in the scenic Dharamshala.