Delhi Capitals (DC) captain Axar Patel won the toss and opted to bowl against Gujarat Titans (GT) in their IPL 2026 clash on Wednesday, backing his side’s chasing form on a surface expected to favour batting.
Axar said it was a fresh wicket and believed batting second would be an advantage, adding that DC had chased well in recent games. He also pointed out that there could be some moisture on the pitch due to recent rain. DC have gone in unchanged.
GT captain Shubman Gill, who returns to the playing XI after missing the previous match due to injury, said his neck is “much better”. He added that it was a good toss to lose as GT would have opted to bat first anyway.
Gill expressed hope for a “good powerplay” with Sai Sudharsan and said he wanted one batter from the middle order to bat through the innings.
The pitch, described as slightly on the drier side with an even covering of grass, is expected to produce a high-scoring contest, with experts predicting a total in excess of 250.
Daren Ganga noted uneven boundary dimensions, while Kevin Pietersen observed some patches on the surface, calling it “dry” and a “decent batting wicket”.
Delhi Capitals, who have started strongly with two wins from two matches, will look to continue their momentum, with their bowling unit in good form and uncapped batter Sameer Rizvi impressing. They will also hope for a return to form from KL Rahul.
Gujarat Titans, meanwhile, will aim to get their campaign back on track and register their first win of the season under Gill’s leadership.
Teams:
Delhi Capitals: KL Rahul (wk), Pathum Nissanka, Nitish Rana, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (capt), Vipraj Nigam, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar.
Impact Subs: Rizvi, Ashutosh, Nabi, Chameera, Nair.
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Ashok Sharma.
Impact Subs: Prasidh, Holder, Suthar, Jayant, Rawat.