Dubai: Riding on some fine knocks by Prithvi Shaw (48 off 31) and Shikhar Dhawan (43 off 35) Delhi Capitals posted a total of 164/5 against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 56th match of IPL 2021 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, here Friday.
Apart from Shaw and Dhawan, Shimron Hetmyer also made a valuable contribution with the bat, scoring 29 runs in 22 balls. Put into bat first, Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan gave Delhi Capitals a solid start. The duo played some glorious shots and took Delhi Capitals to 55/0 after 6 overs.
Even after the powerplay, Dhawan and Shaw were steady in the middle, scoring occasional boundaries and rotating the strike. As a result, Delhi were 88/0 at the halfway mark.
Harshal Patel finally gave Bangalore their first breakthrough as he dismissed Shikhar Dhawan for 43. Skipper Pant joined Shaw in the middle after Dhawan’s departure.
In the next over, Prithvi Shaw played a slog sweep off Yuzvendra Chahal towards mid wicket for the maximum but leg-spinner had the last laugh as he got rid of the DC opener a few balls later. Shaw departed for 48, leaving DC to 101 for 2 at 11.2 overs.
Pant (10) didn’t have a good outing with the bat and he was dismissed by Daniel Christian, who has been among the wickets in the tournaments.
After losing the wickets of Dhawan, Shaw and Pant in short intervals, Delhi was in a spot of bother. It was Shreyas Iyer and Shimron Hetmyer’s responsibility to bat sensibly and bring DC back in the game.
However, RCB bowlers didn’t allow the Delhi batters to score freely and forced them to take chances. In order to give impetus to Delhi’s innings, Iyer tried to go for a maximum but mistimed a slow one from Siraj, getting caught by Christian. Iyer added 35 runs with Hetmyer for the 4th wicket before getting out in the 18th over.
In the last two overs, Shimron Hetmyer dealt heavy blows with the bat, scoring 29 runs in 22 balls. Hetmyer was dismissed in the final ball of the innings but he along with Ripal Patel (7) took Delhi Capitals to 164/5 in 20 overs.
Brief scores: Delhi Capitals 164/5 in 20 overs (Prithvi Shaw 48 off 31, Shikhar Dhawan 43 off 35; Mohammed Siraj 25/2) against Royal Challengers Bangalore
