‘IPL could have had a new champion had he not gotten out’: Aakash Chopra highlights the turning point of Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals final

Mumbai Indians were crowned IPL champions for a fifth time but the winner could have been DC had it not been for a certain untimely dismissal, reckons Aakash Chopra.

At a time when Mumbai Indians are being hailed as one of the best T20 sides in the world after winning the IPL title for a record-extending fifth time, former India opener Aakash Chopra said IPL 2020 could have had a new champion had Rishabh Pant stayed in the middle a little longer. Chopra pointed out how Pant’s dismissal during the Delhi Capitals innings was the turning point of the match.

Players of Delhi Capitals in a team huddle. (Delhi Capitals/Twitter)

“Rishabh Pant’s dismissal was the turning point of the match because there was a very good partnership going on. Where you were 22/3 and from there you had put together a 96-run stand,” Chopra said in his YouTube channel.

The Capitals were reduced to 22 for 3 after Marcus Stoinis, Ajinkya Rahane and Shikhar Dhawan went back cheaply. It was Pant and Shreyas Iyer’s partnership that brought DC back into the game. But just when Pant was looking set for big one, he mistimed a pull shot to be dismissed for 56.

“And till the time Rishabh Pant was there, he had struck two boundaries in that over and if he had played more, then he would have taken the score to 175-180 or even 190,” Chopra said.

Chopra added that Pant was slowly getting back to his destructive best. “He was batting very well after a long time. I had even said that Rishabh Pant had left his destructive self in immigration. So that destructive Rishabh Pant was taken back from the customs and brought into this final match,” he said.

“When he plays like this, we come to know why he is the X-factor. And I am a huge fan of him and I like it when he does well.

“The time he got out, I think that was the turning point. The runs had already come in that over and if he played the slower bouncer a little cautiously and had not tried to hit another boundary, then probably this match might have taken a different course and the IPL might have got a new champion.”

After Pant’s dismissal, Delhi did not get the required push and ended their innings on 156/7. Mumbai Indians chased down the target in 18.4 overs with 5 wickets remaining.