Ajinkya Rahane, Delhi Capitals batsman wanted to stay till the end of the match which didn’t happen as Delhi Capitals qualified for the playoffs after defeating Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Monday.
Chasing a target of 153, Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane were the stars with the bat for Delhi as both batsmen played knocks of 54 and 60 respectively. Ajinkya Rahane, who batted at No. 3 instead of opening anchored the chase for Delhi, eventually was dismissed when his side required 18 more runs to win.
Shikhar Dhawan (Image Credit: IPL)
Ajinkya Rahane: Coach Ricky Ponting Told To Bat At No.3
The right-handed batsman said his team Delhi Capitals wasn’t thinking of the target and he just wanted to finish the game in style. Ajinkya Rahane had opened in the last match but head coach Ricky Ponting told him to bat at number three before the game.
“Ricky told me that I am going to bat at number three. It’s a good position to bat at. Our bowlers did really well for us. I enjoyed the partnership with Shikhar. The communication between us was all about intent,” Rahane told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation.
Ajinkya Rahane
“We weren’t thinking about any target. It was all about playing proper cricketing shots. I wanted to finish the game. We all know how funny the sport is. We’ve seen how things have happened in this IPL. Feels great to win in the end,” he added.
While Shikhar Dhawan scored 54 off 41 balls with 6 fours, Ajinkya Rahane took 46 balls to score 60 with the help of 5 boundaries and a six. The duo stitched an 88 run partnership for the second wicket after the early loss of Prithvi Shaw. For RCB, Shahbaz Ahmed returned with figures of 2/26.
Anrich Nortje Picks 3/33 As Delhi Wins Chasing 153
Earlier, Royal Challengers Bangalore scored 152/7 after opener Devdutt Padikkal scored 50 off 41 balls. Man of the match Anrich Nortje took 3 wickets conceding 33 runs while Kagiso Rabada too returned with figures of 2/30. With this win, Delhi will now play against Mumbai Indians in the first qualifier and the winner of that match will qualify directly for the finals.
Anrich Nortje. Image Credit: IPL.
If Delhi had won the match inside 17.3 overs, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) would have qualified for the playoffs which didn’t happen as Delhi took 19 overs to overhaul the target. On the other hand, despite losing against Delhi, Bangalore also qualified for the playoffs with 14 points from 14 matches. It will be interesting to see if Rahane will bat at the same position in the first qualifier of IPL 2020 against Mumbai Indians.
