Match 27 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Delhi Capitals (DC) at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Saturday witnessed some brilliant individual performances.
India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik won the player of the match award, but Aussie stars also had a say in the clash. While Glenn Maxwell (RCB) and David Warner (DC) hit fifties for rival camps, Josh Hazlewood (RCB) produced the best bowling figures. But sadly for another Aussie star Mitchell Marsh (DC), his 24-ball 14 became a massive talking point.
After the match, losing captain Rishabh Pant defended Marsh's sluggish knock.
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Chasing a stiff target of 190 runs, Delhi got off to a very good start, reaching 50 runs in just 4.4 overs. The fall of Prithvi Shaw in the fifth over heralded the arrival of Marsh, who famously won the player of the match in the ICC T20 World Cup final last November. But playing his first match in IPL 2022, Marsh hardly managed to play a convincing shot.
"Warner batted beautifully and gave us every chance to win this match. We could've batted better in the middle overs. Can't blame Marsh also, since it is his first game," Pant told official broadcasters during the post-match presentation ceremony. "He [Marsh] looked rusty, but it's part and parcel of the game."
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The 30-year-old from Perth looked awfully short of match practice. With a strike rate of 58.33, he not only slowed down the scoring rate but also put pressure on his batting partners. His knock didn't even feature a boundary.
Marsh replaced Sarfaraz Khan in Delhi's XI today.
For the record, Delhi Capitals are Marsh's fifth IPL team. He was previously with Deccan Chargers, Pune Warriors, Rising Pune Supergiants and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Praise For DK
Karthik hit an unbeaten 34-ball 66 which featured five fours and five sixes. But the RCB wicketkeeper got a life early in his innings with Pant dropping a catch off Kuldeep Yadav.
With Maxwell out in the 12th over at the score of 92/5, RCB needed Karthik to bat sensibly, and he took time to settle.
"I think we could've bowled according to our plans but we were slightly under the pump from DK [Dinesh Karthik] in the latter half. I've said before too, we've got to learn from our mistakes," Pant added.
In the 14th over, Karthik got an inside edge off Kuldeep Yadav but Pant failed to complete the catch. Then, Karthik was on 5 off 10.
Karthik then stitched an unbeaten 97-run stand in 52 balls with Shahbaz Ahmed (32 off 21) for the sixth wicket to shift the momentum. And their total of 189/5 proved more than enough against Delhi.
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Karthik, after the match, said that he has "a bigger goal. I have been working really hard. I have been trying to do everything to be a part of the Indian team."
The season has been a revelation for the 36-year-old veteran. He was dropped as captain of Kolkata Knight Riders mid-season last year.
Now, he has scored 32 not out, 14 not out, 44 not out, 7 not out, 34 and 66 not out.
The win helped RCB move to the third spot in the IPL points table. The Faf du Plessis-led Challengers are one of the three teams to have eight points after six matches each. Delhi Capitals dropped to eighth with four points from five matches.
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RCB next face Lucknow Super Giants in Mumbai on Tuesday, while Delhi play Punjab Kings in Pune on Wednesday.
