Hyderabad, May 5 (UNI) Both Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad rang in notable changes as the latter won the toss and opted to field in a must-win IPL 2025 fixture at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Monday.

For Delhi, left-arm pacer T Natarajan returned to the playing XI in place of Mukesh Kumar. Sunrisers Hyderabad made more sweeping changes, dropping Kamindu Mendis and Nitish Kumar Reddy, while also moving veteran seamer Mohammed Shami to the impact substitutes list. Abhinav Manohar and Sachin Baby were drafted into the starting XI.

Sunrisers captain Pat Cummins said the decision to bowl first was aimed at keeping things simple.

"We haven't had a complete game yet. It’s about giving yourself the chance. Everyone's a match-winner and we bat deep. The support’s been amazing despite the results not going our way," he said.

Delhi skipper Axar Patel admitted he too would have chosen to bowl first but was confident in his team’s approach.

"The wicket looks good and shouldn't change much. These are must-win games, but we want to play with a light mindset like we did earlier. We’ve had different players contributing and that’s important," he said. Patel confirmed DC would continue with a balance of three seamers and three spinners.

Delhi Capitals Playing XI: Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (w), Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan.

Sunrisers Hyderabad Playing XI: To be confirmed.

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