Yuzvendra Chahal has been included in the playing XI for the crucial Qualifier 2 clash between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on June 1.
Earlier, PBKS lost Qualifier 1 to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and dropped down to face the five-time champions in Qualifier 2. Meanwhile, MI secured their spot in this knockout match after defeating Gujarat Titans (GT) in the Eliminator at Mullanpur.
Toss Update
PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to field first, while pointing that the pitch has been under the covers which influenced him to bowl. He expressed confidence and emphasised that the team’s aim is to secure a win. On the other hand, MI captain Hardik Pandya acknowledged the importance of assessing the conditions while batting first and admitted that there are still several areas the team needs to improve.
Chahal comes in for PBKS; Topley replaces Gleeson for MI
Yuzvendra Chahal has been included in the playing XI for PBKS, replacing Musheer Khan. For MI, Reece Topley comes into the side in place of Richard Gleeson, who is sidelined due to a niggle in his leg.
What did the captains say?
Shreyas Iyer, PBKS skipper
We are going to bowl first. Slightly overcast and the wicket was under the covers yesterday. Based on these, we are going to bowl first. It’s a fresh day, we’ve recovered pretty well, rejuvenated and our mindset is to go out there and win. Boys are in high spirits, everyone’s thinking positive. The environment in the dressing room is top-notch at the moment, so I can’t complain much. Yuzi comes in.
Hardik Pandya, MI skipper
We also would have bowled first. Looks like a decent track, just need to bat well, assess the conditions early and I think we’ll be okay. It (pitch) has gotten much flatter, the balls have stopped doing as much as it used to do. If you bowl well, fast bowlers tend to get some help. At the same point of time, if you bat well, you can score a lot of runs. There are a lot of areas where we could have got better in the last game. Playing a tight crucial game, one day break, it’s tough but we are into a rhythm and we know what we need to execute. We came very early morning after the game, we needed some rest, most of the guys focused on recovery and being fresh for today. The intensity will be very important and we’re looking forward to it. We had to make one change. Reece comes in place of Gleeson who has a niggle. Reece Topley comes in.
Playing XIs
Punjab Kings
Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kyle Jamieson, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Impact Subs: Prabhsimran Singh, Praveen Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Xavier Bartlet, Harpreet Brar
Mumbai Indians
Rohit Sharma, Jonny Bairstow(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Raj Bawa, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Reece Topley
Impact Subs: Ashwani Kumar, Krishnan Shrijith, Raghu Sharma, Robin Minz, Bevon Jacobs
