As we near the business end of the Indian Premier League 2024, the intensity is escalating, with teams sweating hard for playoff tickets. Among them, Punjab Kings under the leadership of stand-in captain Sam Curran, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru led by Faf du Plessis will face off in the 58th match of the tournament at the HPCSA Stadium in Dharamshala on Thursday.
Nevertheless, Punjab Kings are facing slim chances of qualifying for the knockout stage and will seek revenge against the resurgent Royal Challengers, who have recently climbed from the bottom of the standings.
Despite both teams boasting 4 wins and 7 losses in 11 matches, it’s RCB who sit marginally ahead in 7th place with a superior net run rate, leaving PBKS languishing in 8th place. Even if they win all remaining matches, there’s no guarantee of a playoff spot for either team.
What has happened so far?
In the initial four fixtures of the season, the Kings experienced two defeats against RCB and Lucknow Super Giants, along with two victories over Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Titans. However, their momentum dwindled in the mid-tournament phase, suffering four consecutive losses to Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rajasthan Royals, Mumbai Indians, and GT.
Despite a promising resurgence with a historic run chase against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens and a victory over Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk, PBKS faced another setback with a 28-run defeat to CSK shortly after their previous encounter.
Meanwhile, the initial phase of the tournament for the Andy Flower-coached side proved to be a nightmare for their supporters, managing only a solitary win against Punjab Kings out of their first 8 matches.
Adding insult to injury, they found themselves on the receiving end of an unwanted record courtesy of SRH, who mercilessly pummeled RCB bowlers, amassing a staggering 287-3 in just 120 balls, establishing the highest-ever IPL total.
Nevertheless, RCB’s fortunes shifted when they found themselves in a nothing-to-lose scenario, dominating their opponents in their last three matches against SRH and GT twice, securing victories in all three encounters consecutively.
Head to Head Record
The head-to-head record between both teams highlights the host’s dominance in the North vs South rivalry. Although the Kings have secured victory in 17 out of 32 matches, RCB closely trails with 15 wins.
Notably, the Chandigarh-based franchise and RCB clashed once at this venue in 2011, resulting in Kings XI Punjab’s commanding victory by 111 runs. This match saw KXIP setting the venue’s highest-ever IPL total of 232-2, a record that remains unbroken to this day.
Key Players
Harshal Patel (Punjab Kings): Harshal Patel, making his debut for PBKS this season, initially struggled to live up to his hefty price tag of INR 11.75 crore. However, his recent performances have been impressive, with the speedster delivering a good bowling display in the last few games.
Only one wicket shy of claiming the Purple Cap, the former RCB player has taken 17 wickets in 11 matches, boasting an average of 21.29 and an impressive strike rate of 13.06. While his performance was lacklustre in the first six matches, securing only 7 wickets, the Gujarat-born bowler turned the tide by picking up 10 wickets in the subsequent 5 matches, providing a significant boost to his team.
In the recent clash against CSK at Dharamshala, Patel showcased his prowess by dismissing three batsmen while conceding a mere 24 runs.
Kohli currently has 7805 IPL runs to his name
Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru): Holding the Orange Cap and revered as the heartbeat of every RCBian, Virat Kohli is on the cusp of achieving a significant milestone, needing only 62 runs to amass 1000 runs against PBKS in IPL history.
Topping the charts for most runs scored this season, the former RCB captain has amassed 542 runs in 11 innings at an impressive average of 67.75 and a strike rate of 148.08, embellished with four half-centuries and one century.
If Kohli manages to score 58 runs in the upcoming match, he will equal KL Rahul’s record of scoring 600 runs or more in four IPL seasons each.
Team News from Both Camps
While the visitors arrive without any injury concerns, the hosts are eagerly awaiting the return of their captain, Shikhar Dhawan, who has been sidelined for six matches due to a shoulder injury.
In all likelihood, Dhawan is all set to miss his seventh consecutive game, with PBKS spin bowling coach Sunil Joshi confirming that the veteran batter may only return for the franchise’s last two league matches. In Dhawan’s absence, Curran will once again lead the side at Dharamshala.
Meanwhile, most of the starting players are fit in RCB and the du Plessis-led side would give their best in the upcoming encounter as they will take the field with their preferred set of 11 players.
Predicted XIs
Punjab Kings: Jonny Bairstow, Prabhsimran Singh, Rilee Rossouw, Shashank Singh, Sam Curran ©, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Ashutosh Sharma, Harpreet Brar, Harshal Patel, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis ©, Will Jacks, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Karn Sharma, Swapnil Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Yash Dayal, Vijaykumar Vyshak
Prediction
Given their current form, both teams seem adept at chasing targets, heightening the importance of the upcoming toss. RCB, in particular, appears formidable and is poised to emerge as the favorite in their final away game of the season.