For Rishabh Pant, the upcoming IPL 2025 clash is bound to evoke plenty of memories. It was with Delhi Capitals (DC) that Rishabh Pant began his career in 2016, but by 2025, he’s no longer a part of the franchise after playing eight seasons with them. On Monday, the left-hander Rishabh Pant will represent the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) as they face off against DC in Vizag.
With Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul having traded their jerseys ahead of this season, some know-how that would reside in the camps of Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants even as the respective squads have been shuffled. The coaching staff has also undergone a bit of an overhaul. Fresh ideas and fresh personnel are in, but old concerns remain – how to level up to be counted among the elites of the competition.
Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants are set to face each other in Match 4 of the ongoing Indian Premier League 2025 on Monday, March 24, at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. Both teams will be looking to start their campaign on a winning note after missing out on the playoffs last season due to the net run rate.
DC vs LSG : Previous Performances
DC, under new skipper Axar Patel, has brought in KL Rahul as their wicketkeeper-batter. Their top order, features vice-captain Faf du Plessis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, and Rahul. DC also has a strong bowling line-up with the likes of Mitchell Starc, Mohit Sharma, T Natarajan, and Kuldeep Yadav. The side, who will play their first two games at Visakhapatnam, will look to start well and add crucial points.
LSG, on the other hand, have put their trust in Rishabh Pant, acquiring him for record INR 27 crore and handing him the captaincy. Their batting lineup consists of world-class batters like Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, and David Miller. However, injuries to key pacers Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, and Avesh Khan could leave their bowling attack in trouble. The side has also brought in Shardul Thakur as an injury replacement for Mohsin and is expected to bowl in the middle and death overs.
DC vs LSG : Head to Head
LSG lead 3 – 2. Both of Capitals’ wins came in the last season. The Capitals have had a mixed record against the Super Giants, losing their first three encounters but bouncing back with two consecutive wins
| Matches Played | 5 |
| Won by Delhi Capitals | 2 |
| Won by Lucknow Super Giants | 3 |
| Tied | 00 |
| No Result | 00 |
| First-ever Fixture | April 07, 2022 |
| Most-recent Fixture | May 14, 2024 |
DC vs LSG : Pitch and Weather Report
The Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam will host two Delhi Capitals matches in the opening week. Known to be a batting-friendly wicket, the pitch allows batters to play their shots at will. However, pacers can extract some movement early on, while spinners have found help as the game progresses. The average first-innings score is around 170, and it is expected to be a high-scoring contest. The weather conditions seem favorable for a full game, though light rain is predicted during the day.
The last time an IPL game was played at this venue, Kolkata Knight Riders had plundered 272 runs. Given the impacted pace attack of LSG, DC have the opportunity to display their attacking chops in what could be a high-scoring encounter. Interestingly, both the IPL contests played at the venue were won by teams batting first.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) shellacked 272 here last year, an IPL record at the time. In 19 games at the Andhra Premier League in August, 200 was crossed just once. But that shouldn’t be the barometer to gauge the surface, for the quality of players is vastly different. In all T20s in Visakhapatnam, runs have been scored at 9.2 an over, the third-highest among all Indian venues behind Hyderabad (9.7) and Bengaluru (9.2).
DC vs LSG : Big Picture : KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and points to prove
The IPL has always had players facing their former teams, but this season, there’s added spice to these contests.
KL Rahul, former Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain, will play for Delhi Capitals (DC), while Rishabh Pant faces his old franchise DC after becoming IPL’s costliest auction signing. What’s more, they start their season against each other. In Visakhapatnam, DC’s second home, on Monday evening.
The last images from Rahul’s time with LSG were of what looked like an animated discussion with team owner Sanjiv Goenka after the team’s exit from IPL 2024. Afterwards, Goenka expressed a desire to have “players with a mindset to win” and Rahul wanted to feel “loved and cared for”.
On Monday, Rahul could possibly start – we don’t know yet as he may have to fly home for personal reasons. When he does, he’ll have started without the captaincy mantle that is with Axar Patel’s shoulders – after Pant’s “devastating” exit. Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant will lead LSG at a venue where he received a hero’s welcome last year after he returned to action from a career-threatening accident.
But this game is more than about Rahul and Pant. It pits two teams eager to carve a new identity after squad revamps, and, in DC’s case, support staff overhaul. LSG faces challenges with with all their main Indian quicks injured or in rehab or, in Mohsin Khan’s case, ruled out. DC have strengthened their attack with Mitchell Starc, Mohit Sharma and T Natarajan, while Mukesh Kumar, Axar and Kuldeep Yadav are still there. Looking at that, this could well be a contest between LSG’s batting and DC’s bowling.
Rishabh Pant has played all 111 of his IPL games for DC after starting in 2016, and on Monday, he will face them for the first time. Rahul, who led LSG to back-to-back playoffs, now has a chance to make a statement with the bat, continuing the aggressive brand of cricket he played in India’s Champions Trophy glory run.
Last year in Jeddah, LSG made a bold move to secure Rishabh Pant, splashing out a whopping Rs 27 crore, making him the most expensive player in IPL history. As Rishabh Pant steps onto the field in Vizag, DC will be well aware of the threat he poses, considering his intimate knowledge of the franchise.
Rishabh Pant has since taken over the captaincy from KL Rahul, who has now joined DC. Interestingly, Rahul is also poised to share invaluable insights about LSG with his new team. Both sides have had disappointing campaigns in the IPL so far, and a strong win could give either side the confidence they desperately need.
Mitchell Marsh had a productive IPL 2022 for DC – hitting 251 runs with a best of 89. In IPL 2023, he picked up 12 wickets at 14.16. Now, he joins LSG as a batter because of recurrent injuries.
DC vs LSG : In the spotlight:Â Shardul Thakur
After initially going unsold, Shardul Thakur‘s strong performances with bat and ball for Mumbai in the domestic circuit have earned him a late opportunity with LSG. His county stint with Sussex, which could have boosted his national selection chances for the England tour, is now off, and this is another chance for Thakur to prove his all-round value to remain in national contention.
DC vs LSG : Vital Stats that matters
- LSG’s win percentage of 73 batting first is the highest among all teams since IPL 2022.
- DC’s quick bowling pack had the poorest economy rate (10.7) among all the teams in IPL 2024, so there will be a lot of expectations on the revamped line-up.
- Rahul’s 3958 runs are the most by any batter in the IPL since 2018.
- Pooran is the most prolific six-hitter in T20s since 2024, with 187 sixes. Heinrich Klaasen comes a distant second with 117.
- DC played two home games in Visakhapatnam in IPL 2024, winning one and losing the other. Both games at the venue were won by the side batting first
- Rishabh Pant last opened the batting in T20s in Nov 2022. In the IPL, he last opened in 2016
- Since 2023, KL Rahul has the third lowest strike-rate among openers in IPL, and the second-lowest powerplay strike rate among openers. He could be pushed to the middle order this season.
DC vs LSG : Team news and likely XIIs for DC and LSG
Delhi Capitals:
Injury/Unavailability:Â Harry Brook has pulled out of the IPL, which could potentially affect DC’s plans. But that also opens doors for them to strengthen their top order.
Tactics & Matchups:Â LSG are likely to have three to four left-handers in their middle order, which could potentially dent Axar Patel’s effectiveness through the middle. However, that could also make the role of Kuldeep Yadav and the part-time offspin of Tristan Stubbs more handy.
Rahul joined the team on match eve in Visakhapatnam, but may or may not be available for the game for personal reasons. If he can’t be around, DC have a replacement in Karun Nair, who is coming off a prolific domestic white-ball season. Jake Fraser-McGurk, a star in IPL 2024, has endured a lean run in T20s since – he tallied just 188 runs in ten BBL innings for Melbourne Renegades, with 95 of them in one innings.
Probable XI: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Faf du Plessis, Abhishek Porel, KL Rahul, Axar Patel (capt), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan,
(Impact Sub: Karun Nair/Mohit Sharma)
Lucknow Super Giants:
Injury/Unavailability: Shardul Thakur has come in as a replacement for Mohsin Khan, but LSG have been hit with a slew of injuries to their Indian pacers, with even Mayank Yadav, Akash Deep and Avesh Khan likely to be unavailable for the opening game. LSG have brought on board Shardul Thakur as injury replacement for Mohsin, but there are other big gaps: Mayank Yadav, Avesh Khan and Akash Deep – the heart of their Indian fast-bowling core – are all recovering from injuries.
Tactics & Matchups: Axar Patel and Abhishek Porel are the only left-handers in the DC top-seven. That could give LSG spinners a bigger role to play in a side that is likely to be thin on their pace reserves.
Probable XI: Arshin Kulkarni, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (c/wk.), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Rajwardhan Hangargekar, Ravi Bishnoi, Shamar Joseph
(Impact Sub: Akash Singh/Shahbaz Ahmed/Manimaran Siddharth)
DC vs LSG Fantasy Playing XI : KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant, Mitchell Marsh, Faf du Plessis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Akash Deep
DC vs LSG : Probable Best Performers
Probable Best Batter: Nicholas Pooran
Lucknow Super Giants batter Nicholas Pooran was the second leading run-scorer of the side in the previous season with 499 runs to his name from 14 innings at an average of 62.37 and a strike rate of 178.21 with three fifties. Retained for INR 21 crore, the southpaw will be responsible for taking his team out of tricky situations. If Pooran has a good season he will have good chance of leading the IPL Orange Cap 2024 race.
Probable Best Bowler: Axar Patel
Delhi Capitals’ newly announced skipper Axar Patel can be the game changer for the upcoming game against LSG. Patel, who was part of India’s T20 World Cup 2024 and Champions Trophy 2025 winning teams, will be riding high on confidence. Notably, in the previous edition, the left-armer picked 11 wickets in 14 games. With Visakhapatnam pitch helping the spinners, the Delhi Capitals captain will be handy in the middle-overs.
Axar Patel will be a full-time IPL captain for the first time. One of DC’s four retentions, Axar has been key to India’s triumph at both the T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy by giving the team management batting flexibility, apart from reliability with the ball. Axar has previously led his state team Gujarat in 23 matches across formats, most recently in the domestic white-ball competitions, but IPL will be a different challenge.
DC vs LSG : Match Prediction
Heading into the upcoming match, DC could have the psychological edge, as LSG are struggling with injury issues and a depleted bowling attack, which could play a crucial role in determining the outcome.
Scenario 1
- Delhi Capitals win the toss and bowl
- PP Score – 40-50
- LSG – 160-170
- Delhi Capitals win the match
Scenario 2
- Lucknow Super Giants win the toss and bowl
- PP score – 50-60
- DC – 170-180
- Lucknow Super Giants win the match
Also Read: IPL 2025: LSG Bank On Rishabh Pant’s Flamboyance & Aim To Win Maiden IPL Title