New Delhi: Batting powerhouse Sunrisers Hyderabad were silenced at Vizag on Sunday as Mitchell Starc delivered a fast-bowling masterclass to lead Delhi Capitals to a resounding 7-wicket win.
While his ruthless 5/34 — his first five-for in T20 cricket — left SRH floundering at 163 all out, DC batters led by Faf du Plessis’s (50) ensured that the side chased the total down with relative ease. Although Jake Fraser-McGurk (38) faced early struggles at the crease, Du Plessis provided stability from the other end.
Du Plessis brought up his well-crafted half-century before falling to debutant Zeeshan Ansari (3/42). On his IPL debut, the spinner produced a moment of brilliance by outfoxing the former South African skipper with a sharp, turning delivery that clipped the off stump.
Fraser-McGurk fought hard to build momentum but couldn’t capitalise on his start, departing soon after du Plessis. Ansari struck again to claim the prized wicket of KL Rahul, who played a cameo before being clean bowled.
With Delhi Capitals at a delicate juncture, Tristan Stubbs and Abhishek Porel displayed admirable composure, ensuring there were no further hiccups. The duo navigated the remaining target with precision.
Their assured partnership sealed the victory for Delhi Capitals in the 16th over, underscoring their batting depth and resilience. Ansari’s debut was a silver lining in what was an otherwise difficult outing for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
SRH batting falters again
{{/usCountry}}SRH batting falters again
{{/usCountry}}Earlier, despite a spirited 74 off 41 balls from Aniket Verma, SRH’s innings crumbled under relentless pressure from Starc and a spectacular fielding display. Opting to bat first, Pat Cummins’ side lost four wickets within the powerplay.
After posting a colossal total of 286 in the opening game against Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s aggressive batting approach has not worked out for them in the last two matches. On Sunday against DC, their top-order comprising Travis Head (22), Abhishek Sharma (1) and Ishan Kishan (2) did not click again.
“The plan was to give Starc two overs at the start and two overs at the end, but he was in good rhythm. Hence, I gave him the third over and he was able to pick an important wicket,” said DC skipper Axar patel. Starc tightened his grip on the match in his third over, removing Kishan and Nitish Kumar Reddy (0) within four balls.
Abhishek’s sluggish response to Head’s call for a single resulted in Vipraj Nigam’s underarm throw catching him well short of the crease. Moments later, Head himself fell to his Aussie teammate Starc’s brilliance, attempting a delicate glide over the wicketkeeper only to feather an edge to KL Rahul.
“There’s no ego in bowlers these days. As a bowler you got to think out of the box,” Starc said at the post-match presentation. “You need to do things you wouldn’t normally do. It was nice to contribute in the win today, we move forward from here. Guys know what I am going to do, so you need to think out of the box. As an older player you need to find different ways to get batters out. I tried to bowl different balls today, was pretty effective.”
Meanwhile, a 77-run partnership between Aniket Verma and Heinrich Klaasen (32 off 19) briefly revived Hyderabad’s innings, but Klaasen’s dismissal — courtesy of a diving catch by Nigam off Mohit Sharma (1/25) — shifted the momentum firmly back in Delhi’s favour.
As Verma pressed on, eyeing a century, his audacious attempt to clear the ropes was thwarted by Fraser-McGurk in the 16th over. His fine two-handed overhead catch at the boundary off Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling was a defining moment, extinguishing Hyderabad’s hopes of a late flourish.
It was Delhi’s fielding that stood out in Vizag during their second successive win. Along with Fraser-McGurk, Axar and Du Plessis also contributed with spectacular catches in the closing overs to ensure SRH’s total remained inadequate.