Kings XI Punjab take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the the IPL at Indore on Monday. The game is a must-win for Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers if they have any aspirations of making the playoff.
For Kings XI, although the game isn’t a must-win, a loss could undo all the good work they have done in the first-half of the campaign. With two consecutive losses on the bounce, another on Monday could see the side face a five-way race for two playoff spots.
For Ravichandran Ashwin and his Kings XI, Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb ur Rahman’s fitness will be a huge concern coming into the crunch clash. The 17-year-old had to leave the field after being struck on the bowling hand by a fierce shot in the side’s loss to Kolkata Knight Riders.
The teenager has been highly impressive with the ball in his debut IPL season and it could be a huge loss for the hosts if he is unable to take the field at Indore. If the Afghan man is unable to play on Monday, it could mean a return into the line-up for Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis.
Kohli faces a dilemma when it comes to Quinton de Kock. The South African wicket-keeper has missed the side’s last few matches after returning home to attend a wedding.
De Kock is back with the franchise now but with Parthiv Patel donning the wicket-keeping gloves in his absence, Kohli could opt to persist with England all-rounder Moeen Ali in the line-up instead of reinstating the South African.
LIKELY LINE-UPS
Kings XI Punjab: KL Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, Karun Nair, Mayank Agarwal, Aaron Finch, Manoj Tiwary, Ravichandran Ashwin (c), Mujeeb ur Rahman, Andrew Tye, Ankit Rajpoot, Barinder Sran
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Parthiv Patel (wk), Mandeep Singh, Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers, Moeen Ali, Colin de Grandhomme, Washington Sundar, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal
