IPL 2023, DC vs PBKS | Who said what ft. Prabhsimran Singh, Harpreet Brar
Punjab Kings kept their hopes of a top-four finish alive on Saturday evening with a 31-run win to rule Delhi Capitals out of playoffs contention. The victory was set up by a maiden IPL century for Prabhsimran Singh before Harpreet Brar's four-wicket haul decimated the opposition's batting unit.
On a slow surface at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi Capitals came out second best after failing to capitalize on opportunities. In both innings, the side failed to effectively counter the onslaughts by two of Punjab's unlikely heroes which eventually spelt their doom. Batting first, the Kings posted 167 on the board despite losing wickets at regular intervals, buoyed by a Prabhsimran Singh special. In response, the Capitals started off strong with a rapid 69-run opening partnership but the next 19 runs came at the cost of six wickets, virtually ending all hopes of the hosts for a triumph.
DC are now guaranteed to finish outside the top-four, with two games still to play, with their performance on Saturday drawing huge flak from skipper David Warner who was their sole warrior in the second innings with a 27-ball 54.
It was about trying to restrict them to a decent total. They got more than we thought. Prabhsimran batted really well. Catch drops cost us. After the powerplay when you lose six wickets for 30 runs, we are not going to win. We will play with freedom on our remaining games for pride. Another disappointing effort with the bat after the good start we had. We found the right combination but we keep losing quick wickets and you can't afford that at this level.
At one stage, the Capitals needed 100-odd runs in 14 overs and were bulldozing to victory before Harpreet Brar changed the game with four wickets in three overs, much to his captain Shikhar Dhawan's delight.
It was amazing how the bowlers brought us back in the game. All credit to our spinners and also our fast bowlers as well. It was turning early and playing that kind of knock is just incredible and amazing from Prabhsimran. That helped us reach that decent total. I told Harpreet to keep it slow and target the wickets and the way he stood up and took those wickets was really fantastic. Very happy with the way youngsters are growing and maturing. This win has brought a lot of confidence for us.
The Player of the Match award, unsurprisingly, went to Prabhsimran Singh for a sensational knock of 103 off 65 deliveries. The youngster struggled initially but went from 27 in 29 balls to a 42-ball half-century and did not look back thereafter.
We lost a few wickets so the plan was to take the game deeper. I have been with the team for a long time and when you get opportunities you have to grab it completely. The wicket was slightly tough at the start and the plan was to build some partnership by targetting a few bowlers. Really thankful to the management for the opportunities.
Brar, meanwhile, went for 13 runs in his only over in the powerplay but came back with a fiesty response once the field restrictions were lifted, ending with 4/30.
Obviously I enjoyed it. In the first over, I conceded 13 runs and I was a little nervous. But watching the first innings, I knew I could make a comeback. I was thinking about bowling dot balls and putting the new batters under pressure. (On changes he made after the first over) In the first over, because the wicket was slow, it was easy for batters to go on the back foot. Later, I tried to change that and tried to bring them forward. Whenever you play on a slow wicket, the powerplay is very crucial. It went very well for them but we (me and Rahul Chahar) bowled well in a partnership. He kept applying the pressure, and I got wickets because of that.