The Sunrisers Hyderabad tormented the Delhi Capitals in the 47th game of the IPL as the “orange army” took two points by defeating a beleaguered Delhi Capitals side by 88 runs. This win keeps SRH alive in the tournament, who now have 10 points from 12 games.
Chasing a massive 220-run target, DC capitulated and were bowled out for 131 runs. Keeper batsman Rishabh Pant was the top scorer for the losing team, with 36 runs.
Batting first, Sunrises were on the onslaught from the word go as the opening duo of Wriddhiman Saha and David Warner set up a 107-run opening wicket partnership. Manish Pandey remained unbeaten at 44 runs.
Delhi still sit at the second position on the points table with 14 points from their 12 games.
There were some scintillating performances at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Here’s a look at top 5 performers of the match.
1. Saha Back With a Bang
Wriddhiman Saha, who had been picked in place of Priyam Garg, made most of the opportunity by smashing a match-winning 87 runs off just 45 balls. Saha blasted 12 fours and two sixes in his innings.
With Jonny Bairstow missing from the squad, it was up to Saha to make sure that the side got off to a good start and both Warner and Saha put up a 107-run partnership for the first wicket.
Saha mostly went after the faster bowlers as he took one of the best bowlers in the tournament, Kagiso Rabada, to the cleaners.
Rabada finished with his worst figures in the tournament, 54 off 4 overs. He was awarded the man-of-the-match for his contribution.
2. You Have Been ‘Warner-ed’
SRH skipper and birthday boy David Warner was hitting the Delhi bowlers all over the park as the Australian scored a quickfire 66 off just 34 balls.
Warner, who got to his half-century in just 25 deliveries, continued to put pressure on the bowlers even after the powerplay got over.
The southpaw finally fell to Ravichandran Ashwin but not before setting a good platform for the middle order.
3. Manish the Maverick
Saha and Manish Pandey strung a 63-run partnership for the third wicket but it was Pandey’s batting that took SRH over the 200-run mark.
The Delhi bowlers struggled throughout the innings as they did not have a reply for the SRH top order. The fact that they were only able to pick two wickets in the first innings showed how the bowling unit was under par.
The 31-year-old who hails from Uttaranchal played some masterful strokes to keep the scoreboard ticking and remained unbeaten at 44 runs, with four 4s and one 6.
Pandey has been in decent form in the tournament as this was his second 50+ scored in the last three games.
4. The Spin Wizard from Afghanistan
Rashid Khan, who was introduced late in the innings, was the wrecker-in-chief as he took two key wickets in his first over.
After cleaning up Hetmyer for 16 runs, Rashid bowled a peach of a delivery to catch Ajinkya Rahane in front of the wicket for a simple leg before.
The right-arm leg break bowler wasn’t done as he finished with the best bowling figures in this season of the IPL by picking up 3 wickets and giving away just 7 runs in his four overs. He bowled 17 dot balls in his four overs.
He now has 17 wickets in the tournament and is one of the contenders for the highest wicket-taking bowler of the tournament.
5. Waging the Battle Alone
Rishabh Pant, who hasn’t got a lot of opportunities to bat in the tournament, was the lone warrior in the middle for the Delhi side as he battled for his 36 runs off 35 balls.
Rahane, Hetmyer and Deshpande were the only other batsmen who could hit double figures.
Pant approached his innings with caution as he was losing partners at the other end but as hopes of a win were waning, the swashbuckling left-handed batsman from Delhi was throwing his bat at everything.
Pant was given out caught behind by the third umpire after he edged a ball by Sandeep Sharma to the keeper. What was interesting about the dismissal was that it was given a wide ball before Warner signalled he wanted to go for a review.
Pant hit three 4s and a 6 in his innings.
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