Player of the match: Mayank Agarwal for his 99* despite being on the losing side. It really was quite the innings from the stand-in captain.

PBKS: 166/6, DC 167/3 (17.4)

Shikhar Dhawan has the orange cap again and he says they wanted to win with a good net run rate as well. Delhi Capitals are top of the table. Team to beat this season?

IPL 2021 points table

Team Pld Won Lost Net RR Pts
 Delhi Capitals 8 6 2 +0.547 12
 Chennai Super Kings 7 5 2 +1.263 10
 Royal Challengers Bangalore 7 5 2 -0.171 10
 Mumbai Indians 7 4 3 +0.062 8
 Rajasthan Royals 7 3 4 -0.190 6
 Punjab Kings 8 3 5 -0.368 6
 Kolkata Knight Riders 7 2 5 -0.494 4
 Sunrisers Hyderabad 7 1 6 -0.623 2

DC win by 7 wickets: Delhi Capitals go top of the table. The winning run is a wide from Meredith. A win with 14 balls to spare.

17.2, 17.3, 17.4: ON FIRE! Back-to-back sixes and then a four. Hetmyer is in a hurry. Uses the pace from Meredith, a six down the ground and a four over square leg. Followed by a classy drive through cover.

After 17 overs, DC 148/3: 19 needed off 18 balls. Hetmyer is the new batter in.

Over 16.3: WICKET! Rishabh Pant was looking to finish things off quickly but loses his wicket while he loses the bat as well. Bat went to square leg, ball went to cover. Jordan with the wicket, Agarwal with the catch. Pant out for 14 off 11.

After 16 overs, DC 144/2: Five runs from the Hooda over as Delhi cruise towards the target.

After 15 overs, DC 139/2: Oh what a shot by Pant! On his pads sure, but he hit it so well that it fooled the fielder at deep square leg into thinking it is falling in front of him but flew over. Ridiculous power and timing on a flick. Pant is in NRR mode. Dhawan hit a four earlier in that Shami over.

After 14 overs, DC 126/2: Big over for Delhi. Another slog sweep for four by Dhawan and then Pant gets off the mark with an audacious reverse for four.

HALF CENTURY! Terrific batting from Shikhar Dhawan, his superb form continues. With a six over midwicket off Bishnoi, once again against the angle of the googly. Gets to 51 off 35 balls.

Over 12.6: WICKET! Steve Smith goes for a lofted shot but gets only height and not the distance. He is out for 24 off 22 balls. One four, plenty of running in that brief knock. Meredith gets the wicket his bowling tonight has deserved. DC 111/2 (13 overs, timeout taken)

Steve Smith on 24 (19), with just one four to his name. Plenty of running.

After 12 overs, DC 106/1: Dhawan plays the slog sweep brilliantly and he is ready for this one angled across him from Bishnoi. “That famous Anil Kumble frown,” says Harsha Bhogle as the camera shows the PBKS coach wearing a worried look. DC on course here.

After 11 overs, DC 96/1: That is superb actually from Dhawan and Smith. Nine runs in the Brar over, just through ones and twos. Doesn’t always pay off, but they Delhi can be happy with that.

After 10 overs, DC 87/1: Hooda comes on, and more rotation of strike. They have the start to go slow here, so no reason to panic for Delhi fans.

Just in: United vs Liverpool postponed after players entered Old Trafford pitch earlier in protests. Quite the night in Manchester (as it postpones City’s possible coronation as champions as well).

After 9 overs, DC 81/1: Bishnoi and Brar with a couple of decent overs as Shaw’s departure coincides with a quiet spell. Smith hits a four in Bishnoi’s.

If you know, you know...

Over 6.1: WICKET! What a start for Harpreet Brar! Vs RCB: Wickets of Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers Vs DC: Wicket of a well-set Prithvi Shaw off the first ball. Flights one on the off-stump, grips and turns and beats Shaw by some distance. Similar to the Maxwell wicket.

Powerplay:

Shikhar Dhawan: 22 (15)

Prithvi Shaw: 39 (21)

After 6 overs, DC 63/0: Oh, Prithvi Shaw. What striking! Shortish from Jordan, he pulls with aplomb over midwicket for a six. Then short on the off-side, cut away with precision between two fielders in the circle behind square. If you are going to go short at Shaw, you better be really quick or give him no width. Dhawan finishes the over with another four through cover. What a powerplay for DC.

After 5 overs DC 46/0: Ravi Bishnoi is into the attack and Shaw welcomes him with a superb lofted off drive for six. He is in some touch at the moment.

In a big story from the world of football, the United-Liverpool game has been delayed.

Watch: Manchester United fans storm Old Trafford pitch in anti-Glazer protest

After 4 overs DC 37/0: Shami is going for runs. When Dhawan is punching through the offside, you know he is in good touch. A boundary behind and in front of point in that over.

After 3 overs DC 27/0: More fire from Meredith. A 3-run over ends with a 140-kph short ball that thuds into the abdomen region for Shaw. He is on his knees. Ouch!

After 2 overs DC 24/0: PRITHVI SHAW UP AND RUNNING. A streaky six as he goes after a 144kph length ball and the top-edge goes over keeper’s head. A lucky four as Malan kicks the ball into the fence while sliding at third. But a superb punch for four after that.

After 1 over DC 9/0: Fiery stuff. No surprises to see Meredith go short and fast for Shae, one on the body and one ducked under. Dhawan gets a four but had no clue about that one, squared up by a peach.

Meredith to Shaw...

Innings break: PBKS 166/6 (20). Gives them something to work with but the DC batting lineup can make most targets look small if their openers get going.

End of 20 overs, PBKS 166/6: 4-6-4! What a finish by captain Mayank Agarwal. He carries his bat through, unbeaten 99* off 58 balls. Needed two sixes off the last 2 balls for a century, but hits a six, and four. Nailing a straight drive at the end. Sensational striking.

Mayank on 84 (54) ahead of the final over but looks like the batters crossed last ball! Silly.

After 19 overs, PBKS 143/6: WICKET! Third of the night for Rabada (who won’t bowl out). The over started with a six for Agarwal, ends with the wicket of Jordan. The Englishman had to go big, of course, but he finds the fielder in the deep on the leg side.

Chris Jordan came up with a cameo a couple of matches back at the death, can he do that again here?

After 18 overs, PBKS 132/4: Just fantastic from Avesh Khan, nailing his yorkers. Four runs and a wicket from that over. Even the well-set Mayank Agarwal can’t put these full balls away.

Over 17.2: WICKET! Shahrukh Khan is out quickly tonight, Avesh Khan with his first wicket of the match. DC’s leading wicket-taker has another in the tournament. No timing as Avesh fires on in full, caught at cover by Hetmyer while back pedalling. Avesh has been impressive. 129/5

After 17 overs, PBKS 128/4: A good couple of overs for Punjab. Axar has been so tight today, but his fourth over starts with two boundaries for Mayank. Still, terrific figures of 4-0-21-1.

Correction, over by Ishant Sharma: After 16 overs, PBKS 117/4: A brilliant hit down the ground by Mayank for six, after reaching his fifty.

If you have seen The Last Dance.

HALF CENTURY: Stand-in captain for the night, Mayank Agarwal reaches a fifty with a four off Ishant Sharma. Gets there off 37 balls. Can he take Punjab to a good total?

After 15 overs, PBKS 102/4: That really was quite the runout, and a solid fielding effort by Hetmyer too. Century up in the 15th over as Agarwal hits a six off Rabada.

Over 13.3: WICKET! Oh dear. Both batsmen at the non-striker’s end and there is, in fact, a run out at each end. Question of whether the batters crossed, and they haven’t. Deepak Hooda is the one given out as he had not reached back in time at the first place before Axar got the bails out and managed to throw the ball back to keeper. Chaotic. Two wickets in the 14th over.

Over 13.1: WICKET! A 26-ball 26 for Dawid Malan on his IPL debut. Never quite managed to get his timing right and found the fielders often. Axar Patel bowls him from around the wicket with one that went with the arm. Leg stump. PBKS 87/3.

After 13 overs, PBKS 87/2: It’s not been easy for the PBKS batsmen but a 50-run partnership comes up between Mayank Agarwal and Dawid Malan off 44 balls. Comes up with a boundary for Mayank down the ground off Lalit Yadav. The last couple of overs, the gears are shifting.

STAT via Star Sports: As we mentioned his slow starts, Malan strikes 180+ in T20Is after facing 20 balls. Punjab will be hoping he gets close to that from here.

After 12 overs, PBKS 78/2: Good over for Punjab, 12 runs. A six and four for Malan in Ishant Sharma’s over. Finally a semblance of momentum to his innings. A delightful lofted drive over cover, followed by a well-placed pull shot.

After 11 overs, PBKS 65/2: After 11 overs, Punjab are going at under 6 RPO. Just four runs from the last 2 overs, 2 from Avesh Khan’s too. No timing, gaps are not being found especially by Malan. Delhi bowling to their plans. 11 (17) Malan now. A shift of gears or a wicket imminent.

Just 2 runs from that Axar over, Malan on 10 (14). Punjab struggling for momentum.

After 10 overs, PBKS 63/2: CLOSE! What a case of fine margins, that. Malan misses a ball from Axar, looked very close in real time for LBW. Reviewed by Delhi, and it is umpire’s call for hitting the leg stump.

After 9 overs, PBKS 61/2: Timeout. Malan is a bit of a slow starter as well but can accelerate once he is set. He is on 10 off 10 at the moment as Delhi are doing well to restrict boundaries. None in the last couple of overs.

After 8 overs, PBKS 53/2: Axar Patel’s first over goes for six runs. Delhi keeping things under control.

Elsewhere in the cricketing world...

After 7 overs, PBKS 47/2: Lalit Yadav starts with a tidy first over but the last ball is made to count by Mayank with a cut past point for four. Punjab need a big innings from him.

Correction: That was the 6th over, PBKS 39/2 after 6 overs as Malan joins Mayank in the middle. Rabada has put Delhi on top.

Over 5.2: SIX AND OUT! Rabada vs Gayle, that was blockbuster stuff. Chris Gayle smashes one over square leg for a flat six. Next ball, Kagiso Rabada sends in a really fast full toss that beats Gayle and sends the stumps flying. Was he going for the yorker? It started off like a beamer, and swung away in the air from Gayle and bamboozled him. 35/2.

After 5 overs, PBKS 25/1: A good over for Punjab. Boundary each for Gayle and Mayank as Avesh comes into the attack.

The commentators are discussing about the bizarre nature of Punjab’s batting lineup. Chris Gayle could have opened today, Malan is great at No 3. That would have been the natural batting order. Fair points?

After 4 overs, PBKS 18/1: Solid start by Rabada. Delhi would love for him to come good today. Gayle is in at No 3.

Over 3.3: WICKET! Prabhsimran Singh is caught at mid-off by Steve Smith as Kagiso Rabada strikes in his first over. A powerplay wicket for him! Punjab have not been able to get off the blocks quickly and the youngster plays a lofted shot that did not get any elevation. 17/1.

After 3 overs, PBKS 15/0: Mayank dropped! Avesh Khan dives forward at wide third, but after getting to it brilliantly, he cannot hold on. Prabhsimran hits a six over point later in the Ishant Sharma over.

After 2 overs, PBKS 6/0: An over of six dot balls followed by an over of six singles. Not the start Punjab would have looked for. A replay of the Ishant maiden over shows six deliveries landed on length as a good cluster but that was not great batting from the youngster, it must be said. A couple of deliveries had the width to be put away.

After 1 over, PBKS 0/0: Ishant Sharma starts off with a maiden over. Prabhsimran kept pinned on the crease, not much room to work with. Bang on with his line and lengths there, the veteran.

Ishant Sharma starts off for Delhi, Prabhsimran on strike opening with Mayank Agarwal.

IPL 2021 points table

Team Pld Won Lost Net RR Pts
CSK 7 5 2 +1.263 10
DC 7 5 2 +0.466 10
RCB 7 5 2 -0.171 10
MI 7 4 3 +0.062 8
 Rajasthan Royals 7 3 4 -0.190 6
 Punjab Kings 7 3 4 -0.264 6
 Kolkata Knight Riders 7 2 5 -0.494 4
 Sunrisers Hyderabad 7 1 6 -0.623 2

Punjab Kings XI: Mayank Agarwal, Prabhsimran Singh, Chris Gayle, Dawid Malan, Deepak Hooda, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Chris Jordan, Riley Meredith, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami

Delhi Capitals XI: Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Steve Smith, Rishabh Pant, Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Kagiso Rabada, Ishant Sharma, Avesh Khan

TOSS: Rishabh Pant opts to bowl first, Delhi unchanged. The returning Mayank Agarwal confirms Dawid Malan makes his debut, Nicholas Pooran misses out. So that’s two changes for Punjab.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the Indian Premier League match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, the first of the reverse fixtures of the 2021 season. The second half of the IPL group stage begins with this.

Big team news ahead of the match. Punjab skipper KL Rahul has been diagnosed with acute appendicitis and has flown to Mumbai for surgery and further treatment, which will keep him out of action for at least a week.

Mayank Agarwal is expected to lead the side in Rahul’s absence, starting with tonight’s match against Delhi Capitals.

“KL Rahul complained of severe abdomen pain last night and after not responding to medication, he was taken to emergency room for further tests which revealed that he was diagnosed with acute appendicitis,” the team said in a statement.

“It will be resolved surgically and for safety measures, he has been transferred to the hospital for the same,” it added.

Rahul is expected to operated on Sunday night at the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. The team expects him to return to action within a week or 10 days, reported PTI.

Here are Coronavirus helpline numbers for states and the Union Territories.