PBKS vs CSK IPL Match Prediction: Who will win today's Punjab vs Chennai IPL 2022 match?
MS Dhoni breathed some life into the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by collecting 16 runs off the last four balls against the Mumbai Indians (MI), but the Men in Yellow will know that they need to win practically every game to stand a real chance of making the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs.
After squandering winning positions against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and the Gujarat Titans (GT), CSK are facing an uphill battle that sees them take on the Punjab Kings (PBKS) next at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday, April 25. PBKS haven't fared much better in IPL 2022 with only one extra win from an equal number of matches, with their all-out attacking approach to batting having brought about their downfall several times in succession.
Both CSK and PBKS will know that it's a question of execution and not planning since they have pre-established gameplans that have worked well for them in the past. However, they will also know that they have no room for error, with the losing IPL team likely to be ruled out of playoff contention all but mathematically.
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IPL 2022 Match Prediction: PBKS vs CSK
Neither of the top orders have fired consistently. While Ruturaj Gaikwad has been an astronomical letdown and Moeen Ali was dropped from the CSK playing XI for the previous game, PBKS' top three of Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal and Jonny Bairstow haven't covered themselves in glory so far.
The first meeting between the two sides in IPL 2022 ended as a one-man showing by Liam Livingstone, who smashed a fifty, scalped a couple of wickets and even took two catches. But in games that the Englishman hasn't delivered, the rest of the PBKS middle order has unraveled rather meekly.
CSK, on the other hand, have been boosted by middle-order contributions from Shivam Dube, but the rest of the lineup has flattered to deceive. Mitchell Santner's promotion to No. 3 failed to pay off against MI, while Ravindra Jadeja's cricket has vastly dipped in quality since he took over the reins.
The Kings' pace attack has been among the least penetrative in IPL 2022. CSK's hasn't fared much better but is showing signs of improvement, with Mukesh Choudhary displaying improved control and Dwaine Pretorius offering an unorthodox option at the death.
Overall, while the two teams have clear problems to deal with, CSK seem to be on an upward spiral. And since the Wankhede surface has been notoriously two-paced, that could play into the Super Kings' hands. This one could go either way, but Jadeja and Co. could have a slight advantage.
Prediction: CSK to win Match 38 of IPL 2022