A fearless knock from Shikhar Dhawan helped Delhi to chase down 196 against Punjab. With this win, Delhi moved to the second spot in the points table.
Toss: Delhi opted to field first
Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Detailed Match Report
First Innings (Punjab 195/5)
Delhi handed the debut cap to Meriwala and Steve Smith. In the second over of the innings, Smith dropped Mayank Agarwal’s catch and it hurt Delhi later in the game. In the same over, Mayank smashed 20 off Meriwala’s over and Punjab finished powerplay on 59 without loss.
Mayank completed his fifty off just 25 balls and the openers added 122 runs in 12.4 overs before Meriwala picked Mayank on 69. KL Rahul also completed his 23rd Indian T20 League half-century off 45 balls. Delhi controlled the run-rate after picking Rahul and Gayle but some good hits from Shah Rukh helped Punjab to get 195 on board.
Second Innings (Delhi 198/4)
Delhi made a positive start and the openers added their second fifty-plus stand of the season. Arshdeep Singh provided the breakthrough with the wicket of Shaw. The wicket didn’t stop Dhawan and the left-hander scored his 45th half-century in Indian T20 League. Delhi maintained the run-rate and crossed 100 in just 10.1 overs.
Meredith picked Smith on 9 who was looking for a big shot. Pant joined Dhawan and enjoyed the batting of his senior player. Shikhar Dhawan missed out a well-deserved hundred by 8 runs but assured two points for his side. Delhi avoided any drama in the last overs and chased down the target by losing just four wickets.
Star Performer of the Match
Shikhar Dhawan is our star performer of the match. The Delhi opener dominated the chase with a fearless approach. He scored fine 92 off 49 balls and took the game away from Punjab.
Impactful players of the match
Shikhar Dhawan 92 (49)
Mayank Agarwal 69 (36)
KL Rahul 61 (51)
Prithvi Shaw 32 (17)