Delhi Daredevils‘ hope of making it to the playoffs took a beating, as Shreyas Iyer-led side succumbed to yet another defeat in Pune by 13 runs.
Chennai Super Kings‘ openers – Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis put on a terrific 102-run stand for the first wicket after the side was asked to bat first.
Watson made 78 off 40 balls while du Plessis scored a run-a-ball 33. Ambati Rayudu, who currently holds the orange cup, chipped in with a crucial 41 off 24 balls, alongside MS Dhoni‘s majestic 22-ball 51* to take his side to 211/4.
Delhi’s new skipper, Shreyas, who started his stint as the leader of the pack with a win against KKR, stressed on the missed opportunities and loss of quick wickets.
“Too many runs on the board. Losing four wickets had a massive impact,” says Shreyas Iyer.
Iyer is aware of the fact that Delhi needed to win their remaining games to have a chance to make it to the next stage.
“We got really close, which is a positive we can take into the next match. We need to win six out of six, which is the only motivation we can take into the remaining games. We are really effective in home games, and if we can keep the team stable, that should serve us well.” he added.
Shreyas and Co. fail to put the knock-out punch
For Delhi, Rishabh Pant made 79 off 45 balls, including four sixes and seven sixes. Chennai showed lacklustre in the field, and that almost cost them mighty.
Vijay Shankar hit some lusty sixes towards the end, bringing the equation closer. The right-hand batsman made 54 off 31 balls.
All-rounder Dwayne Bravo had a rare off-day. He was expensive with the ball, conceding 43 runs in his three overs. Lungi Ngidi did a good job with the ball, as he picked a wicket and kept the scoring rate low.
Spinner Harbhajan Singh couldn’t bag any wickets, but he proved economical, giving away just 26 runs in his four overs. For the hosts, debutant KM Asif had shone with the ball, taking two wickets.