Champions League SRL | DC vs Notts Evaluation Chart - Alex Hales pyrotechnics propels Notts to handsome victory
It was a domineering batting performance by Nottinghamshire as Alex Hales, with combined support from Joe Clarke and Tom Moores, guided the Vitality Blast side to a seven-wicket victory against Delhi Capitals. For DC, it was Prithvi Shaw who stood up, but his 74-run knock went in vain.
Match Review
Delhi Capitals boast of a fine Indian core, one that excites and frustrates in equal measure. However, today was the day to rejoice as after a slow start to their innings, Prithvi Shaw accelerated in fantastic fashion with Dhawan giving him the right company. Once the southpaw was dismissed, Shaw was joined by his skipper Shreyas Iyer, who with a first ball six, showed his intent right away. Despite having a shaky start, Iyer’s innings resulted in Delhi reaching 173/3 in 20 overs.
It was going to be a difficult run-chase, especially due to the kind of impact bowlers that the Capitals have, but they possibly hadn’t met the indomitable spirit of Alex Hales. The out of favour English opener scored runs fluently to put the Capitals off the game. He was ably supported by Joe Clarke and Tom Moores, as the Vitality Blast side secured a seven-wicket win with 17 balls to spare.
Turning Point
Nottinghamshire really closed the game in the powerplay during the run-chase and from that point on, Delhi were left to play catch-up. That is where the value of Alex Hales kicks in. A fantastic player at the mercy of his own luck, Hales ensured he made the most of the opportunity to help the Notts to a domineering win.
Highs and Lows
9 out of 10 times you trust Kagiso Rabada, a to-be legend of the sport, to deliver in the face of tough circumstances but today the way Hales and Clarke took the attack on him made for a brilliant viewing as far as a neutral standpoint is concerned. You don’t often see batsmen having that much clarity in their head when facing Rabada and today was a delight.
The inability to take wickets, even though runs dried up in the middle overs, was the ultimate low for T20 cricket survives in a multi-dimensional facet. A total of six wickets fell in 37 overs, despite the game being a sub-180 one, and that talked about the bridge that was left behind by both the teams for the “labour class” bowlers.
Rating Charts
Powerplay exploitation: Delhi 2/10 Nottinghamshire 9/10
It is unlikely that we will ever get to see such a start from the devastating duo of Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw again, for 33 runs off six overs is something they can get to in the matter of a couple of overs. The English duo of Jake Ball and Harry Gurney put a dent to the left-right combination in a fantastic manner, choking up the boundaries first and then not allowing any easy singles.
Notts had a completely contrasting powerplay to DC’s thanks to the attacking duo of Alex Hales and Joe Clarke who smashed Kagiso Rabada as if he is a kid straight from the kindergarten. The South African pacer’s first two overs resulted in 30 runs and then Ishant Sharma, adding insult to injury, gave away 31 runs in his next two, Notts looked at the win from close sight even before the field restriction was lifted, scoring 75 runs in the powerplay.
Middle-overs manoeuvring: Delhi 6.5/10 Nottinghamshire 8/10
Picking wickets is the first aim in T20s and if you fail in that pursuit, your chances are as good as gone. From reducing Delhi Capitals to 33/0 to giving away another 77 in the next 9 overs, the West Bridgford-based team was left to rue their luck with Prithvi Shaw punishing them single-handedly. Shaw combined with Jason Roy first and then Shreyas Iyer to ensure the pain was felt for the Outlaws, and that set the Blast side for a difficult death over bowling experience.
If you have a kind of powerplay that the Notts had, it is only natural that you have the advantage in the middle-overs too. Joe Clarke and Alex Hales set up the base in the early innings, then coach Peter Moores’ son, Tom Moores capitalised on the same to give the Outlaws some advantage. The trio collected 77 runs in that period as the death overs became a formality.
Death bowling: Delhi 3/10 Nottinghamshire 2.5/10
Shreyas Iyer was in a red-hot mood today and seemed like he would crash to all the space out there, without giving a solitary damn. The Delhi Capitals skipper scored 42 runs off just 20 balls, most of which came in the death overs. With Prithvi Shaw continuing the good work at the death too, the duo of Imad Wasim and Harry Gurney suffered the worst, as the Dan Christian-led side conceded as many as 62 runs in the last five and extending it a bit further, 80 runs in the last six. It was a disturbing performance by the English side.
As has been the case in most matches in the SRL, the game was already decided much before the death overs were even bowled. Only 22 runs were required and Notts hardly broke a sweat to get to a comfortable seven-wicket victory against the much-fancied IPL side.
Match Frenzy O Meter - Good
The game was filled with little moments of madness - something that was the USP of the game for neutral fans. The way bowlers tried to pull back the game, the way batsmen defied the threat, was a classic case of how a T20 game should be. It was good in many ways.