Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 will see its second weekend double-header on Saturday, 5 April, with two big matches lined up for matchday 15. (Schedule | Teams | Points Table)
The two clashes will see Chennai Super Kings (CSK) welcome Delhi Capitals (DC) to the MA Chidambaram Stadium, while Punjab Kings (PBKS) will play against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the next game.
It바카라s a clash of the top of the table against the bottom, with the No. 1 and 2 teams in the IPL 2025 table taking on No. 8 and 9 in the games. The matches will help shape the table in the early days of the 18th Indian Premier League edition, especially with almost a quarter of the season played.
Let바카라s list the five big reasons why the IPL 2025 double-header on 5 April is a must-watch for any cricket fan.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Is there any other reason needed to watch CSK바카라s matches than to simply watch MS Dhoni smash the sixes in what is possibly the final season of a legendary career? The 43-year-old former skipper has chosen to bat deep in this lineup this season, coming at No. 9 in the loss against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on 28 March.
Fan uproar led him to come out at No. 7 바카라 which is more like his natural position 바카라 against Rajasthan Royals, and he managed 16 runs from 11.
Despite waning powers, 바카라Thala바카라 has been an explosion at the tail-end, hitting three sixes in two games after his opening-day duck. MA Chidambaram Stadium will surely be sold out as fans all across Chennai will flock to see Dhoni in the yellow jersey.
Chepauk Pitch
It is rare that the clash between two big teams in the IPL becomes all about the pitch, but that is the case with CSK vs DC. The Chepauk pitch has been unpredictable this season, deviating from its famous spin-friendly nature to lend assistance to the seamers in the game against RCB.
CSK head coach Stephen Fleming has pointed out that the team enjoyed 바카라no home advantage바카라 on the ground. This will be more interesting as Delhi Capitals are currently on a losing streak at the Chepauk that stretches to seven games 바카라 DC last won on this ground in 2010.
Will Chepauk prove to be a stranger to CSK바카라s team on Saturday, or will Delhi바카라s losing streak at the city continue?
PBKS Riding On Form
Preity Zinta is a happy person; after investing heavily in their new squad, the Punjab Kings (PBKS) sit first in the IPL 2025 table with two wins in two games and a Net Run Rate (NRR) of +1.485.
They will face an RR team that lost their opening two games in hopeless fashion, with stand-in captain Riyan Parag coming under immense pressure.
A win against CSK will be a morale booster for the Royals, but the wind of victory will be blowing towards the home team. Iyer and Prabhsimran Singh will enjoy playing against RR바카라s spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.
Shreyas Iyer바카라s Golden Touch
Shreyas Iyer has begun to repay the INR 26.75 crore that PBKS invested in him in the auctions. The batter opened his season with an unbeaten 97-run knock against the Gujarat Titans (GT), following it up with a 30-ball 52 in the second game against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
The PBKS team isn바카라t fully ready yet 바카라 Glenn Maxwell is yet to fire, while the bowling is too dependent on Arshdeep Singh 바카라 but Ricky Ponting can be very confident regarding his skipper and No. 3 batter Shreyas Iyer.
Rajasthan Royals바카라s Season Salvage
Rajasthan Royals became the early-season meme team for the IPL 2025, losing their opening two games, and stand-in skipper Riyan Parag became the first RR captain to achieve that feat.
However, the Royals have made a mini-comeback of sorts, beating CSK by six wickets on 30 March. Nitish Rana was the hero for his team, scoring 81 runs off 36 balls. Parag fought back against the pressure, scoring 37 with the bat as well as getting his team바카라s first win.
With regular captain Sanju Samson returning to the fold against PBKS, it will be interesting to see if the away side enjoy any uptick in their form.
