Ishant & Co. deliver win against all odds; Shami's 4/11 goes in vain
AHMEDABAD: Delhi Capitals pacer Ishant Sharma showed why the franchise still considers him the lynchpin of their bowling attack. His international experience and ability to hold his nerves at crucial juncture came to the fore on Tuesday at the Narendra Modi Stadium as he delivered an exceptional last over to keep Gujarat Titans' hard-hitters Hardik Pandya, Rahul Tewatia and Rashid Khan at bay and conjure a come-from-behind five-run win over the defending champion.
Tewatia had raised hopes for Titans by hitting three consecutive sixes, in the penultimate over, off South African pacer Anrich Nortje to bring the equation down to 12 off six balls. But Sharma delivered a high-class final over, depriving the batters the length to free their arms. Backed by athletic fielding, the Capitals kept the Titans to 125/6.
To put the victory into perspective, Capitals, batting first, were reeling at 28/5 after six overs before hauling themselves to 130/8.
1/10:IPL 2023: Delhi Capitals trump Gujarat Titans
ANI
2/10:Aman Khan
<p>Aman Khan's defiant 51 and inspired bowling helped Delhi Capitals edge out holders Gujarat Titans by five runs in a low-scoring thriller on Tuesday. </p>ANI
3/10:Maiden fifty
<p>Aman hit his maiden fifty to lift his team from 23/5 to 130/8 in a clash between bottom-placed Delhi and table-toppers Gujarat in Ahmedabad. </p>AP
4/10:Key partnerships
<p>It was Aman's 44-ball knock that made Delhi fightback as he put on key partnerships with Axar Patel (24) and Ripal Patel (23). </p>AP
5/10:Rashid Khan
<p>Aman smashed three fours and three sixes in his 44-ball knock before falling to Rashid Khan. </p>AFP
6/10:Mohammed Shami
<p>Gujarat pace spearhead Mohammed Shami's bowling figures of 4/11 -- his IPL best -- went in vain but was named man of the match. </p>AP
7/10:Shami's best in IPL
<p>Shami got Phil Salt for a first ball duck and then Rilee Rossouw, for eight, in his two overs before a double strike in his third. </p>AP
8/10:Pandya and Tewatia
<p>Khaleel Ahmed and Ishant Sharma limited Gujarat to 125/6 despite an unbeaten 59 by skipper Hardik Pandya and Rahul Tewatia's seven-ball 20. </p>AP
9/10:Rahul Tewatia
<p>Tewatia smashed Anrich Nortje for three straight hits over the fence in the 19th over but fell in the 20th. </p>AFP
10/10:Ishant Sharma
<p>Ishant returned figures of 2/23 and held his nerve in the final over with Gujarat needing 12 to win and falling short. </p>PTIWriddhiman Saha was caught behind off Khaleel Ahmed's away-going delivery while Shubman Gill punched a wide delivery off Nortje to cover. Sharma then foxed Vijay Shankar with a slower delivery as the Titans slumped to 26/3. Miller was bowled by left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav for nought. Abhinav Manohar, who made 26 (33b; 1x6), and Pandya put on 62 for the fourth wicket but the laboured stand lacked momentum and the former was caught by Aman Hakim Khan off Ahmed's bowling at long-on. Tewatia's 20 off seven balls this time around wasn't enough and it was too late for Rashid to conjure any magic with the willow.
Earlier, Mohammed Shami, delivering a masterclass in fast bowling, broke the back of the Capitals batting order as the visitors slumped to 23/5 after five overs. After six overs, the Capitals had made 28/5, the lowest powerplay score this season. It was only a 50-run stand between Aman, who made 51 (44b; 3x4, 3x6) and local boy Axar Patel, who made 27 (30b; 2x4, 1x6) which helped the team avoid a total collapse. Aman also added 53 off 27 balls for the seventh-wicket along with Ripal Patel, who made 23 (12b; 2x4, 1x6), and the duo helped the Capitals reach 130/8.
The only thing that went right for the Capitals was the flip of the coin. After David Warner called correctly and decided to bat, his partner Phil Salt went for an expansive cover drive off a half-volley off the first ball. A mix-up between Warner (2) and Priyam Garg led to the former being run out at the non-striker's end by Rashid Khan. What followed was an exhibition of high-quality pace bowling from Shami.
