Written by Megan Taylor, sports reporter covering international sports since 2020

DC vs PBKS IPL 2026 began with Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel winning the toss and choosing to bowl first against Punjab Kings in a must-win Indian Premier League match in Dharamsala.

Delhi Capitals made five changes for the game, while Punjab Kings handed a debut to Ben Dwarshuis as both sides looked to handle early movement at a high-scoring venue.

The match comes during another busy Indian Premier League week after Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru IPL 2026 masterclass against Mumbai Indians, while official tournament updates are available on the Indian Premier League website.

Delhi Capitals Make Big Changes

Axar said Delhi Capitals chose to bowl because "It's a fresh wicket and there's help for fast bowlers early on."

The call came despite teams batting first winning four of the five Indian Premier League matches played in Dharamsala since the start of 2023.

Delhi Capitals brought in Sahil Parakh, Abishek Porel, David Miller, Madhav Tiwari and Auqib Nabi.

Pathum Nissanka and Kuldeep Yadav were among the major names left out of the starting XI.

Punjab Kings Hand Dwarshuis Debut

Punjab Kings brought in Dwarshuis for Lockie Ferguson, who has a slight niggle.

Vijaykumar Vyshak was not named in the starting XI or on the Impact Player bench.

That means Harpreet Brar, Yash Thakur or Praveen Dubey could come in when Punjab Kings bowl.

Shreyas Iyer’s side will bat first with Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Cooper Connolly, Marcus Stoinis and Shashank Singh in the line-up.

Dharamsala Conditions in Focus

Dharamsala has been a strong batting venue, with square boundaries of 63 metres and 65 metres.

The straight boundary measures 72 metres, so both sides will need sharp new-ball plans and clean execution at the death.