Why is Yuzvendra Chahal not playing vs Delhi Capitals in IPL 2025?

Punjab Kings have dropped Yuzvendra Chahal from the playing XI in the match against Delhi Capitals in the ongoing IPL 2025. Captain Shreyas Iyer didn’t reveal the reason during the toss as he mentioned that Punjab made only two changes to the playing XI as Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis made their return. However, he didn’t state the reason behind Chahal’s missing, which was later revealed after the team sheets were made public.

It is understood that it might be a tactical call from Punjab. They handed a rest to Chahal while Harpreet Brar was named as the sole spinner in the playing XI. Meanwhile, with Inglis and Stoinis making their return to the playing XI, Punjab dropped Mitch Owen and Xavier Bartlett. 

Meanwhile, Delhi won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Axar Patel missed out on the match due to illness, and in his absence, Faf du Plessis once again led the team. Delhi made two changes to the playing XI, as Karun Nair made his return while Sediqullah Atal made his debut. 

After the toss, Shreyas mentioned that the team is happy to make it to the playoffs but reminded that the job is halfway done and wants all the players to remain focused for the business end of the tournament.

“Defintely happy faces. I am not satisfied and content. We want to build momentum from here. Each and every individual is performing for the team. Job half done as of now. Important to stay in the present and seize every possible chance. Inglis and Stoinis come back into the side.

Teams:

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh

Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): Faf du Plessis (c), Sediqullah Atal, Karun Nair, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs (wk), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohit Sharma, Mustafizur Rahman, Mukesh Kumar