New Delhi: A stellar bowling performance led by Ishant Sharma and an exceptional display in the death overs by the Delhi Capitals (DC) bowlers proppeled the Capitals to a thrilling 19-run victory over the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
Chasing 209 LSG skipper, KL Rahul, fell early to Ishant Sharma’s delivery, managing only five runs in three balls. LSG found themselves at 7/1 in just 0.5 overs, further losing Quinton de Kock for 12 runs to Ishant Sharma’s bowling. Marcus Stoinis was stumped by Rishabh Pant off Axar Patel’s spin, leaving LSG struggling at 24/3 in 3.1 overs.
Nicholas Pooran brought some hope for LSG, launching a counter-attack against DC’s bowlers, including Axar Patel, whom he punished with a barrage of boundaries and sixes. Despite Pooran’s resilience, Ishant Sharma continued to wreak havoc, claiming his third victim by dismissing Deepak Hooda for a duck. By the end of the powerplay, LSG reached 59/4, with Pooran and Ayush Badoni at the crease, showing resilience amidst the early setbacks.
As the innings progressed, Pooran showcased his batting prowess, reaching a blistering fifty off just 20 balls. However, LSG continued to lose wickets at crucial junctures, with Mukesh Kumar ending Pooran’s fiery knock at 61 runs. Arshad Khan and Krunal Pandya provided some resistance, but DC’s bowlers, led by Ishant Sharma’s three-wicket haul, maintained pressure on LSG’s batting lineup, restricting them to 189/9 in 20 overs.
In the first innings, Abhishek Porel and Tristan Stubbs commanding half centuries propelled the Delhi Capitals to formidable total of 208/4 against the Lucknow Super Giants. DC suffered an early setback as opener Jake Fraser McGurk fell for a duck in just the second ball of the innings. Despite this, Abhishek Porel and Shai Hope took charge, launching a counter-attack against the opposition. Porel, in particular, exhibited his prowess with the bat, smashing elegant boundaries and towering sixes to propel DC’s innings forward.
As the innings progressed, the duo of Porel and Hope built a solid partnership, frustrating the Lucknow bowlers with their aggressive stroke play. Porel, reaching his second fifty of the tournament in just 21 balls, provided the backbone for DC’s innings with his explosive batting. However, Lucknow managed to break the partnership, dismissing Hope for a brisk 38 runs. Despite the loss of wickets, DC continued to pile on the runs, with skipper Rishabh Pant and Tristan Stubbs contributing crucial knocks to propel the team to a formidable total.
In the latter stages of the innings, Stubbs emerged as the standout performer, showcasing his batting prowess with a scintillating display of power-hitting. His blistering fifty in just 22 balls, comprising of three fours and four sixes, propelled DC past the 200-run mark. With Stubbs and Axar Patel remaining unbeaten, Delhi Capitals concluded their innings with an imposing total of 208/4, setting the stage for an intriguing contest against Lucknow.
LSG captain KL Rahul won the toss and elected to bowl first against Delhi Capitals. After winning the toss LSG skipper KL Rahul said, “We will bowl first. It is because of how our team is placed and what will help our team. We are a young bowling attack and get them into the game early, we have experienced batters and they can take the pressure. It is pretty clear for us, we have to win both games. The last two games we have not been up to the mark and have been blasted out of the game. The bowlers have to be brave, as a bowling unit you might fear using change ups but they have to do just back themselves. Couple of changes.”
DC captain Rishabh Pant at the toss said, “We would have batted first. There are a lot of things going on (regarding qualification) but you can only focus on winning the game. If you had not lost too many wickets we would have won that game, but easier to say that from sitting out. That is a concern throughout the season but as a captain you can ask the players to give their best and they are doing that. We have two changes – myself and Naib come in, Warner misses out.”
Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): Abishek Porel, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Gulbadin Naib, Rasikh Dar Salam, Mukesh Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed
Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w/c), Quinton de Kock, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Nicholas Pooran, Krunal Pandya, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Arshad Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mohsin Khan
