After suffering a thumping five-wicket victory against Rajasthan Royal (RR) and ending their five-match winning streak, KL Rahul-led Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) will aim to come out with all guns blazing against bottom-placed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Sunday at Abu Dhabi.
KXIP might've suffered heartbreaking defeats in the early part of the season but their pursuit of qualifying for playoffs didn't end. Picking up late form, the Punjab side registered five consecutive victories, bolstering their chances of achieving a top-four finish. However, with six teams fighting for a playoff spot at the moment, things have turned a bit tricky for Rahul's men. They will be under immense pressure against CSK as a defeat will be the end of the road for them.
They're currently sitting fifth in the points table, having won six out of their 13 games. The biggest positive for KXIP will be the recent form of their star-- Chris Gayle. Despite being 41, the Caribbean superstar has delivered impressive performances with the bat to strengthen KXIP's batting unit. The explosive opener has scored 276 runs in only six matches at a strike-rate of 144.50.
Along with Gayle, KXIP will also be relying on skipper Rahul to deliver yet again. The leading run-scorer is sitting with 641 runs in 13 innings at an average of 58.27. Along with Rahul, the franchisee will also be hopeful of the return of Mayank Agarwal at the top. Talking about their bowling force, Mohammed Shami, with 20 scalps under his belt, has been consistent with the ball. He is currently the fifth-highest wicket-taker in the on-going season.
Talking about CSK, it's been a weird journey for them this year. For the first time in the IPL history, the MS Dhoni-led side hasn't made it to playoffs due to below-par performances. They're currently sitting at the bottom of the points table and will be hoping to finish their season on a positive note.
CSK are already out of the competition but they've spoilt the party of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in their previous two games. The three-time champions have delivered an impressive batting performance lately and youngster Ruturaj Gaikwad has slammed match-winning knocks in both the games. All eyes will also be on skipper Dhoni to provide CSK fans with one memorable batting knock. 'Thala' Dhoni has scored 525 runs against KXIP in the tournament's history.
In the previous game between CSK and KXIP, the former had registered an emphatic 10-wicket victory. Dhoni's men will be expecting to deliver a similar performance this time too.
Dream11 Playing XI: KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Deepak Chahar.
