IPL 2025: Why is Karun Nair not playing in PBKS vs DC Match 58?

Karun Nair will not play for the Delhi Capitals on Thursday, May 8 when they play the Punjab Kings at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. Rain forced the cancellation of DC’s most recent match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, allowing only one innings to be played.

Both PBKS and DC enter this match having won seven and six of their previous eleven games, respectively. A victory in this match would guarantee the hosts’ qualification. However, a victory for DC would increase their chances of finishing in the top four.

Toss Update

Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bat first. He attributed his decision to the ground conditions as well as his side’s batters being in great nick. In contrast, Axar Patel revealed that he would’ve bowled first anyways. He was confident that his teammates would navigate the tide while chasing.

Karun Nair makes way for Rizvi, Vipraj included in the Impact Substitutes list

Sameer Rizvi was included in the mix in the place of Karun. After the blazing 89 (40) with which Karun got his IPL 2025 off, he has not been able to replicate a showing of similar stature. Karun’s recent six innings, post the blinder of a knock, saw him score only 65 runs in total. Meanwhile, this is set to be Rizvi’s third game this season.

Vipraj Nigam is named in the list for Impact Substitutes. The 21-year-old all-rounder from Madhya Pradesh, Madhav Tiwari, was enlisted in the XI for DC. PBKS went in with an unchanged squad from their recent 37-run win against Lucknow Super Giants.

What did the captains say?

Shreyas Iyer (PBKS)

We’ll bat first considering the outfield. The fans are happy with my decision. If you see the last game, the way our openers started and other batters capitalising, that gives us a fair point to come and bat first. Essentially, if you see the trend in the IPL, the players who are in form and win you matches are the team who go ahead and win the championship.

That’s a great motivating factor coming down after 11 games. The team is in high spirits right now and everyone is stepping up at the right time. Absolutely on top of the world the way things are panning. It’s important we tick the boxes right, not think about the results that much. You got to stick to your routines. We are going with the same batting line-up.

Axar Patel (DC)

We would have fielded first because of the weather. The wicket will remain the same throughout the game and our batters will know how to plan the chase. Despite playing badly, we are still in this position which is good. It’s a long tournament, these things happen it’s important to be positive. Madhav Tiwari comes in for Vipraj Nigam.

Playing XIs

Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis (wK), Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Azmatullah Omarzai, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh

Impact Substitutes: Vijaykumar Vyshak, Harpreet Brar, Praveen Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Yash Thakur

Delhi Capitals: Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel (wK), KL Rahul, Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Madhav Tiwari, Mitchell Starc, Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan

Impact Substitutes: Ashutosh Sharma, Jake Fraser McGurk, Mukesh Kumar, Vipraj Nigam, Tripurana Vijay