NEW DELHI, May 3: Their play-off berth sealed, Delhi Capitals will aim for a big win against Rajasthan Royals to enhance their chances for a second-place finish when the two teams clash in their final IPL league match, here on Saturday.
The Capitals are already sweating over key pacer Kagiso Rabada�s fitness as the South African pacer missed a game first time this season against Chennai Super Kings due to a stiff back on Wednesday. And in all likelihood, Delhi will not risk playing Rabada on Saturday, when they are sure to compete in the Play-offs for the first time in seven years.
A big win on Saturday will not only boost Delhi�s morale after the 80-run hammering at the hands of CSK but it could also propel the side to the second position in the eight-team standings.
Delhi are currently sitting third with 16 points from 13 games, just behind Mumbai Indians (16 points) and table toppers CSK (18 points).
A win against Rajasthan will enhance Delhi�s chances of featuring in Qualifier 1, giving them two shots at the May 12 final. In the absence of Rabada, Delhi�s bowling attack looked miserable, but it is the shoddy performance of the batting unit which would be a cause of concern for skipper Shreyas Iyer.
Chasing CSK�s challenging 179 for four, Delhi were shot out for just 99 with only Iyer (44) making a significant contribution. The likes of Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant and Colin Ingram would like to forget the disastrous outing against CSK and come out afresh in Delhi�s last home game.
Rajasthan, on the other hand, are mathematically still alive in the tournament with 11 points from 13 games.
They need to win against Delhi and hope for favourable results from other remaining games to secure a Play-off berth as the fourth team.
Match starts at 4 PM. � PTI
