IPL Live Score: CONTRASTING FORTUNES FOR CAPTAINS PANT AND AXAR

There’s a curious irony at play: while both teams have performed well — each with 10 points — their captains have had contrasting individual campaigns.For LSG, Rishabh Pant’s form has been a growing concern. The flamboyant wicketkeeper-batter has scored just 106 runs in eight matches, with 63 of those coming in a single innings. His overall strike rate of 98 is uncharacteristically low, raising questions about his impact.Pant will now be tested against a quality DC bowling attack featuring Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Vipraj Nigam, and Mukesh Kumar.Meanwhile, Axar Patel — leading DC — has fared better with the bat, scoring 140 runs at a strike rate of 159. But that improvement has come at a cost. With just one wicket from seven matches and an economy of 9.36, his bowling has taken a backseat.The increased responsibility of captaincy and a higher batting role may be taking a toll on Axar’s primary skill. The DC think-tank will want their skipper to find balance and contribute more effectively with the ball to add depth to their attack.

Squads (from):

Lucknow Super Giants: Rishabh Pant (captain/wk), Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, David Miller, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Akash Deep, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Shahbaz Ahmed, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh, Shamar Joseph, Manimaran Siddharth, Aryan Juyal, RS Hangargekar, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Akash Maharaj Singh, Mayank Yadav, Arshin Kulkarni.Delhi Capitals: Axar Patel (captain), Jake Fraser-McGurk, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohit Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, Sameer Rizvi, Darshan Nalkande, Donovan Ferreira, Tripurana Vijay, Dushmantha Chameera, Faf du Plessis, T Natarajan, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Manvanth Kumar L, Madhav Tiwari.