IPL 2021 Qualifier 1 DC vs CSK: MS Dhoni vs Rishabh Pant rivalry, head-to-head and other stats

Chennai Super Kings’ old guards with an uncanny knack of owning the big stage at the right moments, will start as favourites against a solid Delhi Capitals line-up led by ‘young pretender’ Rishabh Pant in what promises to be an exciting first IPL Qualifier here on Sunday.

Capitals were the best team in the league and their 20-point finish at the group stage was an indication of their consistent performances which didn’t dip due to the COVID-19 forced break.

Similarly, CSK are now back in familiar settings of play-off rounds, something that they have been done 11 out of 12 times although losing three matches on the bounce wouldn’t have amused their all-powerful skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

DC, on the other hand, were handed a rude jolt by Kona Bharat’s last-ball six in their last group league game against Royal Challengers Bangalore. It didn’t change their pole position but did enough to shake them from their stupor.

Ahead of the IPL 2021 Qualifier 1, let’s look at important stats and numbers apropos DC vs CSK:

Head-to-head record:

CSK are ahead of DC Delhi in terms of head-to-head record in IPL. In 25 clashes, CSK have won 15 games while DC emerged winners 10 times.

However, the tables have turned drastically in recent seasons of IPL. In the last five matches contested between the two sides, DC lead by four games to one.

At the Dubai International Stadium, DC lead 2-0 in the head-to-head race as CSK will aim to reduce that gap after today’s clash.

In IPL 2021, DC emerged as winners on both occasions. They won the first encounter by seven wickets and recently emerged victorious in a last-ball thriller by three wickets.

Approaching milestones:

• CSK all-rounder Dwayne Bravo needs just one wicket to become the first bowler to scalp 550 wickets in T20 cricket.
• Bravo is also 2 wickets shy of overtaking Amit Mishra and become the second-highest wicket-taker in IPL history. While Bravo has 165 scalps, Mishra has 166 wickets. Lasith Malinga (170) tops this list.
• DC skipper Rishabh Pant needs 59 runs to complete 2,500 runs in the Indian Premier League.
• DC all-rounder Axar Patel is five scalps away from completing 100 wickets in the Indian Premier League.

Teams:

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, KM Asif, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, N Jagadeesan, Karn Sharma, Lungi Ngidi, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, R Sai Kishore, Moeen Ali, K Gowtham, Cheteshwar Pujara, Harishankar Reddy, Bhagath Varma, C Hari Nishaanth.

Delhi Capitals: Rishabh Pant (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Prithvi Shaw, Ripal Patel, Shikhar Dhawan, Shimrom Hetmyar, Shreyas Iyer, Steve Smith, Amit Mishra, Anrich Nortje, Avesh Khan, Ben Dwarshuis, Ishant Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Kulwant Khejroliya, Lukman Meriwala, Pravin Dubey, Tom