Lungi Ngidi not playing: Chennai Super Kings have been asked to bat first in their IPL 2021 season opener at the Wankhede Stadium.
Advertisement
During the second match of the ongoing 14th season of the Indian Premier League between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals in Mumbai, Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant has won the toss and chose to field.
“We will bowl first. The wicket looks a bit soft. I will be a mix of youth and experience, have done a bit of captaincy in 2017, but my first IPL game. We aren’t playing in Delhi, so think it’s working fine,” Pant told Star Sports at the toss.
With the South African duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje not playing as they undergoing a mandatory quarantine period, Capitals have handed debut to the English pair of Chris Woakes and Tom Curran with Shimrom Hetmyer and Marcus Stoinis as their other two overseas names.
Additionally, Delhi have picked Avesh Khan ahead of Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav as the solitary Indian fast bowler in their IPL 2021 season opener.
Some interesting selections for DC: Avesh Khan ahead of Ishant and Umesh; Rahane starts; and no Steve Smith. Meanwhile, CSK can bat till No. 11, with Bravo slotted at 9. #CSKvsDC
— Sambit Bal (@sambitbal) April 10, 2021
Why is Lungi Ngidi not playing vs Delhi Capitals?
Much like Pant, Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni also expressed his desire of fielding first. Playing his first competitive match since IPL 2020, Dhoni talked about how defending a total can be difficult at the Wankhede Stadium.
“We were also looking to bowl, it’s slightly difficult to defend on this ground. Dew could be a factor, but it’s cloudy today, so it might not be a factor. The combination looks good, some of the overseas players turned up late, some are in quarantine, but we are ready to go,” Dhoni told Star Sports at the toss.
Super Kings, who had bought Karnataka all-rounder Krishnappa Gowtham for a whopping INR 9.5 crore in the auction earlier this year, haven’t included him in their Playing XI despite him being one of the five most costliest players in this auction.
As far as fast bowler Lungi Ngidi is concerned, he wasn’t available for this match just like his South African teammates in Rabada and Nortje. With the South African players reaching India earlier this week only, they will be available once they finish a seven-day mandatory quarantine period.
