In the end the Capitals’ worst nightmare came true for Delhi. The dream of playing their first IPL final was dusted off after a loss to Chennai Super Kings in the second Qualifier.
Delhi Capitals made it to the play-offs having the same number of wins and points as the two finalists, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings (9 wins, 18 points). But the team’s performance on Friday, 10 May night was that of an average side. As a result, Delhi will walk away empty handed from another IPL season.
In the second qualifier, Chennai defeated Delhi by six wickets to book a place in the final, making it 3-0 against Delhi in IPL this season.
After being asked to bat first, DC posted a target of 148 for CSK, which the latter chased with six wickets in hand.
Sunday’s final will feature the top two sides from the league stages - Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings. This means that the two most deserving sides will be fighting for the ultimate prize.
Both the sides have more titles than any other team in IPL history (3 each). What needs to be understood is why Delhi failed to get past Chennai throughout this season.
CSK were Favourites, Even for a Bigger Total
If you think that Delhi scored 10-15 runs less on the scoreboard, then let’s not forget that Chennai won the game with an over remaining. CSK were mentally prepared to get 180 runs on the scoreboard even before the game began, be it setting a target or chasing one. Not even one six was hit by Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu or MS Dhoni, because it wasn’t required.
- Suresh Raina- 11 runs off 13 balls (0 X Sixes)
- Ambati Rayudu- 20 runs off 20 balls (0 X Sixes)
- MS Dhoni- 9 runs off 9 balls (0 X Sixes)
What also needs to be understood is how this situation arose that meant these batsmen didn’t have to go for a single big shot.
It is all thanks to the CSK openers, Shane Watson (50 off 32) and Faf du Plessis (50 off 39). They got their team past the 100 run mark in 11.5 overs, which negated the need to take risks for the upcoming batsmen.
Now let us shift our focus to Delhi. This side certainly had the dynamic youth-driven game mentality but it lacked the big game strategy and approach. Delhi needs to understand that even in a 20-over format, you need to keep wickets intact and hit at the right times rather than giving away half of the wickets in 12.5 overs at the score of 80.
After the dismissal of Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan and Colin Munro, skipper Shreyas Iyer should’ve tried to stay on the pitch till the very end. Instead he gave away his wicket in the 12th over after playing an aerial shot.
It was Rishabh Pant who changed his game strategy by playing Tahir’s spell with composure but he too was dismissed as soon as he tried to become aggressive. It is clear that he still has a long way to go. The 21-year-old needs to learn when to be aggressive and when to be defensive.
It was the 16 unexpected runs scored by Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra that saved Delhi’s day, otherwise they would’ve been restricted at 125 only. Even if the whole team makes something out of the game on 10 May, they will have to wait for another year for their next chance.
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