Rishabh Pant and MS Dhoni, both had their moments on Sunday with the bat in the IPL 2024 match between Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, in Visakhapatnam. While Dhoni, in his first batting opportunity this season, turned back the clock, to give a glimpse of his vintage self in a blazing cameo for Chennai, Pant notched up his maiden IPL fifty in more than a year, having missed the IPL 2023 owing to his recovery from that tragic car accident. The latter also led Delhi to their first win this season, as Chennai lost by 20 runs.
Opting to bat first in their adopted home ground for this season, as the Arun Jaitley Stadium is undergoing changes after having hosted the second leg of the Women's Premier League (WPL) earlier last month, Prithvi Shaw and David Warner stitched a fiery 93-run stand, where the latter scored his fifty. Pant then carried the momentum forward with his 32-ball 51, laced with four boundaries and three sixes, before Matheesha Pathirana cleaned up the middle order as Delhi amassed 191 for five in 20 overs.
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Khaleel Ahmed gave Delhi a stellar start with the ball, reducing CSK to two down for just seven runs in 17 balls before Ajinkya Rahane carved out a 30-ball 45 and stitched a 68-run stand alongside Daryl Mitchell. Mukesh Kumar gave Delhi some hope with quick wickets, which was enough to lower Chennai's chances in the chase. Dhoni did threaten to take the match away with his unbeaten 37 off 16, which comprised four boundaries and three sixes. But the efforts were not enough for Chennai, who only managed 171 for six in 20 overs.
{{/usCountry}}Khaleel Ahmed gave Delhi a stellar start with the ball, reducing CSK to two down for just seven runs in 17 balls before Ajinkya Rahane carved out a 30-ball 45 and stitched a 68-run stand alongside Daryl Mitchell. Mukesh Kumar gave Delhi some hope with quick wickets, which was enough to lower Chennai's chances in the chase. Dhoni did threaten to take the match away with his unbeaten 37 off 16, which comprised four boundaries and three sixes. But the efforts were not enough for Chennai, who only managed 171 for six in 20 overs.
{{/usCountry}}Minutes after the game ended late on Sunday night, Sakshi, Dhoni's wife, took to Instagram, to post a story, where she "welcomed back" Pant, following his fifty, before tagging the former CSK captain with a tongue-in-cheek reaction. It said: “Hi there, MS Dhoni! Didn't realise we lost the game.” The post also had a picture of Dhoni holding a post-match IPL award.
The win helped Delhi secure their maiden win in IPL 2024 after back-to-back losses away from home and Pant was quick to credit the bowlers for the victory. "Bowlers have been clinical today. We've learnt from our mistake," he said in the post-match presentation.
Delhi will next host Kolkata Knight Riders on April 3 while Chennai will next play an away game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 5.