Delhi Capitals defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by an innings and 58 runs at Brabourne Stadium on Thursday, David Warner’s first match against his previous team after being released last year (May 5). In response to being called to bat, Warner and Rovman Powell sparked the Capitals to a formidable 207/3 with a fourth-wicket stand of 122. Sunrisers lost by 21 runs because they got too far behind the pace too early in the chase, leaving a lot of work for Nicholas Pooran.
Warner re-energizes the Capitals
In the absence of Prithvi Shaw, Warner was forced to bat with a new opening partner against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Mandeep Singh made his season debut. Four changes had been made to Delhi’s line-up prior to this game, and this one was among them. It was short-lived for Mandeep, though. Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s wicket-maiden put the Capitals in a precarious position in the first over. In spite of this, Warner ensured that they didn’t lose much ground in the power play.
After a sluggish start, Umran Malik went for 21 in the fourth over, including two fours and a six by Warner. As fast as Malik was, he couldn’t get those deliveries high enough to bother Warner, who swiveled over and dispatched it behind square.
The Sunrisers fed Warner a steady diet of pull shots, but he also had a pronounced preference for wide shots. Three of the seven boundaries he scored in the powerplay came from pull shots, while the other four came from full and wide deliveries that allowed him to unleash his whacking power. After just six overs, the Capitals were 50/2.
The mini-explosion from skipper Rishabh Pant, though, occurred prior to that happening. Gopal was making his SRH debut and Pant went 6, 6, 6, 4, until he dragged an outside-edged full toss into his stumps off the penultimate ball of that over, which was a six.
Rovman Powell entered the fray following Pant’s dismissal. After pleading with his captain to put his faith in him, Powell went on to demonstrate what he could achieve when given more time in the middle of the order.
Jamaican powerhitter played himself in courtesy to Warner taking charge from the other end as he sped past his fifty and kept the boundaries flowing from over 10-15, which helped him to play himself in. After a full delivery from Malik was smashed right to mid-off, the ball flew out of Williamson’s hands like a rocket and gave Powell a second chance. Powell, on the other hand, did not waste any time in wreaking havoc on the Sunrisers. He started with a total of 21 from his first 19 balls and concluded with 67* from 35.
The final over of that onslaught was the most exciting in the whole thing. Powell hit three fours and a six in the 20th over against Umran Malik’s lightning bolts, the fastest of which was delivered at 157kph. Powell ended the innings with a bang. Except for Bhuvneshwar, who finished with scores of 1/25, all of the bowlers took a beating.
SRH get off to a shaky start.
Having Abhishek Sharma at the top of the order, Sunrisers might have used a quick start to their innings. But in the second over, he was bowled by a half-volley off the pads to short fine leg, bringing an end to his innings. Anrich Nortje, newly inducted into the team, quickly dispatched Williamson with a quick length ball. During the powerplay, Sunrisers were 35/2 behind the pace of play.
Pooran is fighting an uphill struggle that he cannot win.
It was already over 14 percent when we were about half-way through the chase. A pairing between Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran has been a constant for Sunrisers in the middle. To keep them in tune with the pace, Markram blasted a flurry of boundaries. But he couldn’t keep up the pressure, as Khaleel miscued him and he left for 42. Lack of control was not an issue for Pooran, who took up the reins. Until the final four overs, it remained at or near 15 runs per over. A tight over from Khaleel and Pooran’s dismissal in the next over by Thakur was all it took to put the game back in the balance. The umpire didn’t flag a no-ball despite the fact that he wasn’t thrilled with the decision to rule that the whole toss was above the waist. The Sunrisers suffered their third defeat in a row as a result of the Capitals’ victory.
It was a 21-run victory for Delhi Capitals over Sunrisers Hyderabad, who were bowled out for 181 in their first innings.