With KL Rahul set to open, explore the LSG vs DC match 5 both teams best playing 11 for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026.
Three matches, three tosses won, and the team batting second won all the matches. This has been the case so far in the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League, IPL 2026. With IPL slowly becoming a batting paradise, the next match seems no different as the Delhi Capitals take on the Lucknow Super Giants in LSG’s home den, Lucknow. It once again promises to be a batting paradise, with two explosive batting lineups up for display.
It is the clash of two big players, who technically made a swap from their previous franchise. So, Rishabh Pant, a former Delhi Capitals Captain and player, has moved to Lucknow Super Giants. Whereas KL Rahul, a former Captain and player for Lucknow Super Giants, has made a move to Delhi Capitals. The match will also see a few more former DC and lSG players like Mitchell Marsh, David Miller, Avesh Khan, etc.
Both teams retained most of their core ahead of the IPL 2026 Mini Auction. With a solid core already in place, both DC and LSG did gap filing in the Auction as they added the likes of Mohammed Shami, David Miller, Auqib Dar, Anrich Nortje, Wanindu Hasaranga, and many more. But with a few changes already in place, what will be the likely playing 11 for the LSG vs DC match 5 of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026? Well, let’s find out in this article.
Key Match Details
Tournament: Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026
Match Details: LSG vs DC 5th Match
Where: Lucknow
When: April 1, 2026, 7:30 pm IST
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) Complete Squad List for IPL 2026
Batters
- Aiden Markram (OS)
- Akshat Raghuvanshi (OS)
- Ayush Badoni
- Himmat Singh
- Matthew Breetzke (OS)
Wicket-keepers
- Josh Inglis (OS)
- Mukul Choudhary
- Nicholas Pooran (OS)
- Rishabh Pant
All-rounders
- Abdul Samad
- Arjun Tendulkar
- Arshin Kulkarni
- Mitchell Marsh (OS)
- Shahbaz Ahmed
- Wanindu Hasaranga (OS)
Bowlers
- Akash Singh
- Anrich Nortje (OS)
- Avesh Khan
- Digvesh Singh
- M Siddharth
- Mayank Yadav
- Mohammed Shami
- Mohsin Khan
- Naman Tiwari
- Prince Yadav
Starting with the playing 11 of Lucknow Super Giants, and the first big headache for them will be who replaces Wanindu Hasaranga. Hasaranga, as we know, is their only good All-rounder given Mitchell Marsh isn’t bowling anymore, and Markram is good for 1 to 2 overs at max. So, without Hasaranga, the All-rounder duties shall rely on Shahbaz Ahmed, who will nave to play at 7-8 position to add batting and bowling depth.
Without Hasaranga, LSG should ideally now play Anrich Nortje in place of one of Avesh, Mayank or Shami. Given Mayank hasn’t played a lot of competitive cricket lately, expect Avesh Khan and Mohammed Shami to start above Mayank Yadav. If things don’t work out with these two pacers, expect Mayank to then replace any of these. Also, with lack of All-rounders, LSG should add Mukul Choudhary for batting depth. And that means, LSG will only have 5 bowlers + Markram for cushion.
IPL 2026 LSG vs DC 5th Match Best Playing 11 for Lucknow Super Giants
- Mitchell Marsh
- Aiden Markram
- Nicholas Pooran
- Rishabh Pant (c&wk)
- Ayush Badoni
- Abdul Samad
- Mukul Choudhary
- Shahbaz Ahmed
- Avesh Khan
- Mohammed Shami
- Digvesh Rathi
Best Impact Player: Anrich Nortje
It will also be interesting to see where Rishabh Pant plays. Pant had a horror tournament last year batting at 4, and he could barely manage 300 runs. His form was a big concern. But when he played at 3, he scored a century. So, will Rishabh Pant continue to play at 3, or have Pooran take that position. This will be a big call. But aside from having a solid top 4, Ayush Badoni and Abdul Samad will need to take up the finishing duties for LSG.
Delhi Capitals (DC) Complete Squad List for IPL 2026
Batters
- Ashutosh Sharma
- David Miller (OS)
- Karun Nair
- Pathum Nissanka (OS)
- Prithvi Shaw
- Sahil Parakh
- Sameer Rizvi
Wicket-keepers
- Abhishek Porel
- KL Rahul
- Tristan Stubbs (OS)
All-rounders
- Ajay Mandal
- Auqib Dar
- Axar Patel (C)
- Madhav Tiwari
- Nitish Rana
- Tripurana Vijay
- Vipraj Nigam
Bowlers
- Dushmantha Chameera (OS)
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Kyle Jamieson (OS)
- Lungi Ngidi (OS)
- Mitchell Starc (OS)
- Mukesh Kumar
- T Natarajan
The Delhi Capitals team started well last Indian Premier League, but somehow improper playing 11 changes left them in a soup in second half. This is one thing they would like to improve upon from last season, and thakfully, they have a core of 8-9 players from previous season, and a couple of good additions that only make their playing 11 solid. The team added the likes of Nitish Rana, David Miller, Auqib Dar, Lungi Ngidi, and Kyle Jamieson to the squad, who bring great skillset with them.
First things first with regards to the playing 11, DC should fix their opening combination, and KL Rahul and Abhishek Porel should be the preferred openers for the season. In a very rare scenarion if they want more stability at the top, they can go with Pathum Nissanka. But for start, Porel, who did well for for DC in last couple of seasons should continue to open with KL Rahul. Nitish Rana should be the number 3, and middle-order should be taken care by the experienced South African duo, Tristan Stubbs and David Miller.
IPL 2026 LSG vs DC 5th Match Best Playing 11 for Delhi Capitals
- Abhishek Porel
- KL Rahul (wk)
- Nitish Rana
- Tristan Stubbs
- David Miller
- Axar Patel (c)
- Ashutosh Sharma
- Vipraj Nigam
- Kyle Jamieson
- Kuldeep Yadav
- T Natarajan
Best Impact Player: Lungi Ngidi
The finishing duties shall continue to rely on Axar Patel, Ashutosh Sharma, and Vipraj Nigam. Whereas the bowling duties shall rely on Lungi Ngidi in absence of Mitchell Starc, T Natarajan, Kyle Jamieson as the third pacer, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Vipraj Nigam. Overall, the squad composition looks solid, and they have all bases covered. Hopefully, the team doesn’t repeat the mistake they did while treating Natarajan last year.
Thanks for reading! What’s your best playing 11 for the LSG vs DC Match 5 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com