Mohammed Shami has been Kings XI Punjab’s strike bowler this year, with the pacer grabbing eight wickets in four matches so far. While he has leaked runs at the death, he has given his team crucial breakthroughs more often than not. However, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will hope that their most consistent batsman so far — Faf du Plessis — will ensure that the India pacer does not have a great day with the ball when the two teams meet at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.

The two have faced off thrice in the Indian Premier League (IPL), with Shami dismissing him once.

But Du Plessis has hit him for 33 runs in the 17 deliveries he has faced off Shami at a strike rate of 194.12, and will look to continue to dominate him.

Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has scored 195 runs in four matches so far and is CSK’s highest scorer so far this season, with two half-centuries.

CSK captain MS Dhoni will be again relying on him to deliver, with the rest of the batting order failing to fire so far, leading to the team losing their last three matches in a row.

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Mohammed Shami, with 8 wickets, has been key for Kings XI Punjab, who have struggled with their death bowling and will be looking at the fast bowler to lead their attack in taking early wickets.

KXIP too have lost three of their four matches so far, and will be looking to reverse their fortunes.