The Prodigal Son – Rishabh Pant returned to Delhi to display that his heart beats for Delhi Capitals despite the multiple injuries he sustained during the horrific car accident last year. His presence did boost the Capitals’ confidence but it wasn’t enough for them to collect the two crucial points. The fans cheered loudly for the home team but it wasn’t an ideal homecoming for the Capitals as Hardik Pandya’s Gujarat Titans registered a clinical 6-wicket win.
The mood was electrifying at almost packed Arun Jaitley Stadium as the fans were excited to see the Capitals back at their den and the speculations of having Pant only doubled it up. The DC supporters at Bishan Singh Bedi Stand displayed gigantic jersey to show their support for Pant as they wished them a speedy recovery.
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It was the third over of the match when fans got a glimpse of their superstar captain who has been ruled out of this season.
The flip of the coin worked in Gujarat Titans’ favour and Hardik Pandya chose to bowl as he didn’t want to tamper with the winning formula of his side. However, it was not an ideal start for the defending champions as premier pacer Mohammad Shami struggled to get his line right and bowled three wides out of which one even went for a boundary as 13 runs came off it. Swashbuckling Prithvi Shaw opened his account with a boundary in the third over but soon Shami got his number. Meanwhile, Mitchell Marsh, who was in tremendous form against India in the ODI series last month, failed on the second straight occasion this season and was castled by Shami for 4.
Captain David Warner had another slow outing as he scored 37 runs off 32 balls. The southpaw scored 7 boundaries but played too many dot balls which have been an area of concern for him in recent times. While Sarfaraz Khan once again failed to replicate his domestic cricket form in IPL and scored 30 runs off 34 balls at a strike rate of 88.24 which is a crime for every batter in T20 batter when he or she has faced over 30 balls.
The dot ball pressure piled up on DC and Alzarri Joseph took the advantage of it by dismissing Warner and Rilee Rossouw on back-to-back deliveries which broke the back of the hosts.
However, Axar Patel (36 off 22 balls) once again came out a lone warrior for his team with the bat. DC would have struggled to get 150 if Axar didn’t swing his bat hard in the slog overs.
Returning Anrich Nortje gave a finishing touch to Delhi Capitals’ innings with a boundary on the last ball as the hosts posted 162/8 in 20 overs.
IPL 2023 Delhi Capitals vs Gujarat Titans Highlights
Chasing the target, Wriddhiman Saha played a couple of aerial shots to set the tempo as he scored a quick 14 but Nortje rattled his stumps on the first ball of his spell with his express pace. The Proteas pacer didn’t stop there as he outclassed the in-form Shubman Gill on the first ball of his second over. Khaleel Ahmed joined the party started by Nortje and dismissed Titans skipper Pandya for just 5
The pressure was back on Titans with the three quick strikes but B Sai Sudarshan, who got a chance in the XI with Kane Williamson got ruled out, filled the big shoes in the first match.
Sudharshan (62* off 48 balls) batted with a sense of responsibility which is a key aspect of batting at the number 3 spot. He showed patience and took his time to rebuild his innings and revive the chase. The southpaw shared a crucial 53-run stand with the Impact Player Vijay Shankar (29).
Marsh, who didn’t get a chance to bowl in the first match, dismissed Shankar in the quest to pull DC back in the game, however, it made things worse for the home side as David Miller arrived in the middle. The IPL veteran blew away Delhi Capitals with his magnificent shot-making. He scored a quickfire 31* off 26 balls to seal the deal for the Titans.
Miller hit the winning runs for Gujarat with 11 balls to spare as he shared an unbeaten 56-run stand with young Sudharshan.
Some fans left the stadium right after the match while few stayed to witness all the post-match drama which they were missing for the past three years.
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