Delhi Capitals (DC) will take on the in-form Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 51st match of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Friday, May 8. Both sides desperately need a win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.
DC is currently seventh in the standings with eight points. However, they have won only one game from their last five fixtures in the competition. On the other hand, KKR are placed eighth in the points table after winning three consecutive games.
DC vs KKR: Toss Update
KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane declared the toss correct and decided to invite the host team to bat. The right-handed batsman said that it is difficult to understand the changing pitch of Delhi, but his aim is to give his best performance in the game. He also talked a lot about the mood in the camp after three wins. Meanwhile, DC captain Axar Patel is not worried about losing the toss and believes that it is always good to get runs on the board first.
DC vs KKR: Delhi Capitals made two changes, T. Natarajan out in place of Mukesh Kumar.
Capitals have made two changes in their team and included Mukesh Kumar in place of fast bowler T. Natarajan. Akshar Patel termed the pitch as a bit slow and perhaps this could be the reason for the change in the team. In the second DC change, Vipraj Nigam replaced Karun Nair. Meanwhile, KKR have named an unchanged side.
DC vs KKR: What did the captains say?
KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane said
We are going to bowl first. The last 3-4 games we saw were very different games, 264, 160, there was a low-scoring game against RCB as well, so I thought it was important to look at the wicket, see how it is playing and then it becomes easier to bat on. But having said that, winning the toss, not losing the toss, it's all about playing good 40 overs cricket. (Any change?) Nothing. (On the surface) Look, it is difficult, to be honest it is difficult to understand the wicket, it is important when you start, whether you are going to bowl first or bat first, assess the conditions and react as per the situation and circumstances. (Having quite a long break between matches) It was good for us, when we went during that first big break, we won the game, that mood was really important from a team point of view. The team has been amazing, the mood of the group has been amazing. As I said, it's working very well, good for us, this game is about starting fresh and doing well.
DC captain Akshar Patel said
“For me there is nothing like that, batting first or bowling first, you know, the idea is not in our hands. So, as a team, you have to be prepared whether it is batting first or bowling first. You just have to be on your toes from the very first ball, it is very important. There are two changes in my team – Mukesh Kumar is in place of Natarajan, and Vipraj Nigam is in. As much as I have played on Delhi wickets, I think not too much spin. But there is a bit of slowness, you know, the ball comes a bit slow, so as far as seamers are concerned, they use a combination of three spinners and three fast bowlers. Everyone who plays here is a professional cricketer, so if you bowl the ball well, it is good. And if you bowl a bad ball, obviously… even if you see long boundaries, batsmen hit sixes there, even 90 metres. So I think instead of focusing on the boundary size, you should focus on your good bowling.
DC vs KKR: Playing XI
Delhi Capitals
Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Lungi Ngidi, Mukesh Kumar
Kolkata Knight Riders
Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicketkeeper), Cameron Green, Rovman Powell, Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Karthik Tyagi, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakraborty.
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