Shimron Hetmyer not playing: Delhi Capitals have made as many as three changes to their Playing XI for their last league match.
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During the 55th match of the ongoing 13th season of the Indian Premier League between Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore in Abu Dhabi, Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer has won the toss and elected to field.
“We will bowl first. Dew is going to play a massive role. Looking at the previous games the surface was a belter. This track is also looking amazing to bat on. So chasing we would be having a certain total in our mind and we would be having a clear idea on the run rate as well – considering those factors we decided to bowl,” Iyer told Star Sports during the toss.
Much like Iyer, Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli also wanted to field first but remained unperturbed after being asked to bat first.
“It is good to be batting first but we would have bowled had we won the toss. We have been in this situation before and the three finals we have reached we have gone through like this,” Kohli told Star Sports.
Why is Shimron Hetmyer not playing today’s IPL 2020 match vs RCB?
Given the must-win nature of this match, both teams have made multiple changes to their Playing XI in a bid to field their optimum combination at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.
Capitals, who have made as many as three changes, have included the likes of batsman Ajinkya Rahane, all-rounder Axar Patel and pacer Daniel Sams for batsman Shimron Hetmyer, pacer Harshal Patel and spinner Praveen Dubey.
While Iyer wasn’t asked about the rationale behind Hetmyer’s exclusion, one believes it has been done to accommodate Sams. In 10 matches this year, Hetmyer’s 138 runs have come at an average and strike rate of 19.71 and 140.81.
As far as Royal Challengers are concerned, they have included all-rounder Shivam Dube and spinner Shahbaz Ahmed for batsman Gurkeerat Singh Mann and injured pacer Navdeep Saini.
