IPL 2019 | Player Ratings: Delhi Capitals’ batting failure cost them a spot in the final
Delhi Capitals’ batting collapsed like ninepins in the all-important Qualifier 2, which paved way for Chennai Super Kings into the final against Mumbai Indians. DC posted a modest total of 147, which was just not enough to contain the star-studded CSK’s batting as they won the game by six wickets.
Prithvi Shaw (1/10): Coming fresh from a match-winning fifty in the previous encounter, the expectations were high from Prithvi Shaw but the young gun floundered in a high-voltage situation. The ball was coming nicely on to the bat, but Shaw completely missed a pull shot only to be trapped leg before, which was overturned after CSK reviewed it. It was a golden opportunity for someone like Shaw to inscribe his name with gold, but the promising batsman only squandered it.
Shikhar Dhawan (4/10): A lot of Delhi Capitals’ success is dependent on the way Dhawan fares. He not only sets the stage for the explosive middle-order to capitalise upon but also sets the tempo by making batting look easy. Dhawan was living up to his reputation, where he was timing the ball exquisitely, but fell prey to Harbhajan Singh’s persistence. His fall dented DC’s run big time as he has been their most prolific run-scorer and has wreaked havoc in the powerplay overs.
Colin Munro (5/10): The southpaw’s elevation at three was somewhat surprising for many, but his initial approach suggested that he was there for the kill. But as wickets kept tumbling from one end, Munro gradually shifted towards the slower gears and was trying to rescue the DC innings with some beautiful strokes against the spinners. DC needed him to carry on for a while and stitch a quiet partnership, but it wasn’t to be as he ended up sweeping straight into the hands of Dwayne Bravo off Jadeja’s bowling.
Shreyas Iyer (3/10): After a disheartening campaign against the Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he was dismissed for eight, Iyer’s hopes were pinned to this encounter. But there was no revival of fortune for the DC skipper as he threw his wicket away when his team needed him the most. Although DC were in hot water, but Iyer could have batted few more overs before shifting gears.
Axar Patel (4/10): With Delhi losing wickets at regular intervals, Axar Patel was sent ahead to calm the storm down, but his sluggish innings and early dismissal only added more trouble to languishing side. With the ball, Axar’s spell oscillated between mediocrity and occasional sparks of brilliance.
Rishabh Pant (7.5/10): After playing a match-winning innings against SRH in the eliminator, Rishabh Pant found himself in a similar situation tonight also. With wickets falling like ninepins, Pant played a mature innings and help his side post a fighting total. He was dismissed in the pen-ultimate over while attempting to heave Chahar for a maximum only to be caught at long-on. Nevertheless, his innings was of some substance and his untimely dismissal did not cost the team a lot as the tail-enders sprung surprise with some power-hitting.
Sherfane Rutherford (3/10): Barring the lofted drive for a six off Harbhajan’s bowling, Rutherford never looked comfortable against the spinners on this surface and eventually perished to one. Tahir troubled him with his canny variations, and Harbhajan dismissed him for a sluggish 10 off 12 deliveries.
Keemo Paul (1/10): The protagonist from the previous encounter, Keemo Paul would like to forget this day, where he was just too erratic and struggled for control. One just cannot afford to leak so many runs while defending such a modest total, but his failure only fizzled out the pressure caused by other bowlers. Three overs for 49 runs speaks about his ineffectiveness.
Amit Mishra (6.5/10): Again, on paper this spell looks like a fabulous spell, but runs on the board was just not enough to put pressure on this surface. Mishra outfoxed Watson on couple of occasions, with the first one being a missed opportunity, he did have the last laugh eventually. Mishra conceded 21 runs for a wicket in his quota of our overs. Mishra earns an extra point for playing some mind-boggling strokes with the bat.
Trent Boult (6.5/10): This is the kind of start a team needs while defending such a low total, but a wicket or two would have pushed CSK on the backfoot at the start. His third over saw du Plessis making the long walk back to the pavilion as Boult showed what he is made off. One also cannot deny the fact that DC’s total was below par, which didn’t give their bowlers enough liberty. Boult finished with figures of 20 for 1 in four overs.
Ishant Sharma (6.5/10): We’ll talk about his bowling later, let’s throw some light on his batting first. He smashed Jadeja for a six and a boundary in the final over to give his side that psychological edge. With the ball his first two overs were absolutely brilliant, where he made no errors whatsoever, but his third over shifted the momentum in CSK’s favour. Ishant has looked like a different bowler this season and has repaid the faith invested in him with interest. Not to mention, he also got rid of Dhoni in his final over.
