'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Another day, another new venue in IPL 2024. Because Delhi Capitals (DC) want to give their home, the Arun Jaitley Stadium, some rest after the Women's Premier League, DC will host Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Dr. YSRR ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam for their first home match of the season.
How the pitch would behave in the evening is anybody's guess. But the Capitals didn't like that Delhi offered a slow and sluggish track in IPL 2023 and the authorities made an effort to turn it into a batting delight during the 2023 World Cup. So, you can expect they'd have asked something similar of the Vizag curators too.
However, at the same time, the average first innings score here is just 152. All of it makes it a bit difficult to predict who could dominate the proceedings with the ball but we have tried to pick three, and here's the result.
#3 Kuldeep Yadav
Flat wicket, pacy wicket, turning wicket - Kuldeep Yadav will be among the wickets. The left-arm wrist spinner is in that kind of form. He has shone for India and has now picked up three wickets in two games at an economy rate of just 7.63 in IPL 2024.
CSK have historically been good against him in the IPL. However, his added pace, drift and variations could be dangerous against their Kiwi duo of Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell, while also troubling Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ajinkya Rahane.
He could face some trouble against the likes of Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja but even those should be evenly matched battles thanks to the extra bounce he has been able to generate of late.
Kuldeep hasn't played any IPL games in Vizag but his ODI record here is superb --nine wickets in four matches at an average of 19.22.
#2 Deepak Chahar
Vizag does offer some swing early on across formats. In the eight IPL matches here so far, pacers have dominated with 61 wickets compared to spinners' 36. Deepak Chahar could be CSK's main man to exploit that advantage.
The seamer has slowly started to kick back into form after a long injury layoff and has three wickets from two matches. He has a positive match-up against DC's opener David Warner, who he has gotten out twice in T20s, and the rest of the unsettled DC lineup could be susceptible against him too.
#1 Mustafizur Rahman
CSK, like they always do, have picked up Mustafizur Rahman from his struggling and on-off displays for Bangladesh to convert him into a serial wicket-taker in the IPL. The left-arm seamer has six scalps from two games and is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon. He'd be, without a doubt, the Capitals' biggest threat.
CSK's flexible bowling set-up suits him and he'll be bowling throughout the innings against DC and would be a threat in all phases too. DC's problems are mainly in that middle-order where Ricky Bhui (if he gets another chance), Rishabh Pant, Tristan Stubss, and a word-class finisher-lacking lower-order could struggle against him.
