Dharamshala, May 14:
Punjab Kings will need to plug gaping holes in the bowling and fielding department as they look to stop their free-fall in the business end of the Indian Premier League against an already eliminated Mumbai Indians here on Thursday.
After bossing the first half of the tournament, Punjab Kings have lost four games in a row and now find themselves in a precarious position in the race for play-offs.
They need to win at least two of their remaining games to secure a place in the top four.
It was not so long ago that they were the only unbeaten team in the tournament but such is the nature of the format and the IPL that fortunes can swing either way rather quickly.
As captain Shreyas Iyer pointed out after the loss to Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings only have themselves to blame for being in a difficult spot.
The in-form batting unit masked the frailties in the bowling department in the first half of the tournament but more recently, even posting an above par score, by Iyer’s own admission, has not been enough against Delhi Capitals.
Iyer and Co. had the game in the bag on a seaming surface but the pacers could not get their lengths right in the last five overs. The pace attack led by Arshdeep Singh has the worst economy rate among the 10 teams.
Xavier Bartlett and Arshdeep provided a stable new-ball combination in the first half of IPL but now that has been unsettled with the arrival of Lockie Ferguson, who is known for his skills in the middle and death overs.
They went with three left-arm pacers in the last game by including Ben Dwarshius who proved rather expensive on the night.
Lead pacer Arshdeep has conceded more than 10 runs per over in the majority of the 11 games he has been a part of.
Spin was not tried for the whole of the game on Monday night and it remains to be seen if Yuzvendra Chahal is used during the second game here.
On the batting front, Prabhsimran Singh needs to get back among the runs to complement Priyansh Arya at the top. A massive improvement in catching and ground fielding is also expected from Iyer and Co.
They face Mumbai Indians, a team that massively under-performed this season but can certainly spoil the opposition’s campaign.
It remains to be seen if captain Hardik Pandya, who did not play the last two games due to a niggle, takes the field on Wednesday night.
Suryakumar Yadav, who has struggled for runs both at the international level and franchise cricket over the past 12 months or so, would be looking to make the most of the remaining three outings in the IPL.
Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma too would be expected to provide a flying start in the powerplay.
The seasoned pace duo of Trent Boult, who is not a sure starter, and Jasprit Bumrah would be looking to make the ball talk in the seam-friendly conditions.