Delhi Capitals (DC) suffered a crushing 67-run defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Match 35 of the IPL 2024 season at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Saturday (April 20).
Invited to bat first, SRH piled up a gigantic 266/7 on the board. While the duo of Travis Head (89 off 32) and Abhishek Sharma (46 off 12) set the tone with an opening stand of 131 runs in just 6.2 overs, Shahbaz Ahmed (59* off 29) and Nitish Reddy (37 off 27) made valuable contributions in the middle overs.
In reply, DC’s innings folded for 199. After losing both the openers cheaply, the hosts fought back a bit thanks to some fireworks from Jake Fraser-McGurkc (65 off 18) and Abishek Porel (42 off 22).
However, their dismissal triggered a collapse as DC slumped from 109/3 to 166/6. While skipper Rishabh Pant tried to delay the inevitable with a patient knock of 35-ball 44, Delhi’s innings eventually ended in 19.1 overs.
After the disappointing loss, batting legend Sunil Gavaskar consoled Pant, asking him to never put his head down.
"I never want your head down, there are lots of games so keep a smile always," Gavaskar told Pant during the post-match interaction.
The DC captain was left overwhelmed by Gavaskar's supportive words and responded, "I will try my best, sir".
Pant conceded that his side was playing catchup after Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma's powerplay exhibition, smashing 125 runs in first six overs to create an IPL record.
"I think power play was the difference. We were just catching up throughout the match. That was the massive difference. Hopefully, we will come back with more thought process and clear mindset," he remarked.
The DC skipper also said he probably misjudged the dew factor at the Arun Jaitley Stadium and opted to bowl first after winning the toss.
"The only thought process behind that (deciding to bowl first) was we thought there would be some dew but it didn't come. I thought if we could restrict them to 220-230, we would be in with a chance."
Veteran seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up just one wicket but his restrictive spell in the high-scoring affair -- 33 runs in 4 overs -- played a key role SRH’s comfortable win.
"Feeling good. Not among the wickets but the way I want to execute it is happening. Just a matter of time," said Bhuvneshwar.
"When defending those many runs, you either go for plenty or you get wickets. We accepted that we'll go for plenty of runs when defending those many runs, but the plan was to keep executing," he added.
Bhuvneshwar was also effusive in praise of his fellow pacer T Natarajan, who returned with stunning figures of 4/19 in four overs.
"Amazing. We know how good he is at yorkers. He keeps working hard, silent guy, goes unnoticed a lot. We know how important he is for Sunrisers. For so many years, this is the first time our batting is clicking so much. As a bowling unit, happy to take the back seat. They (batters) are ruining us... when we defend 180 or so, it'll feel like less," he said.
Bhuvneshwar revealed both Head and Abhishek bat in the same manner at nets. "Yes, same, especially Head and Abhishek, playing the same way. Batters sometimes play opposite (manner) in the nets, but they play the same way."
In the end, Bhuvneshwar made a cheeky remark as he claimed that batters bring the sponsorship while bowlers win championships for teams.
"Bowling is something... somebody says batting wins your sponsorship, but bowling wins you championship. The way we are bowling right now looks bad on the scorecard but it is pretty good for us," he concluded.
(With inputs from PTI)
