Undeterred by the number of COVID-19 cases in its camp, Delhi Capitals defeated Punjab Kings at the Brabourne Stadium on Wednesday.
Five of the six bowlers that Capitals employed after winning the toss picked at least a wicket each to bundle Kings out for a paltry 115. Prithvi Shaw and David Warner then came into their element as the opening duo’s assault ensured an early finish.
Shaw and Warner’s 83-run partnership, with a whopping 81 of them coming in the PowerPlay, helped Capitals wind up the game in the 11th over. The facile nine-wicket win not only helped Capitals mark a hat-trick of wins at Brabourne but also gave their net run-rate a much-needed boost.
The match, which was shifted to the Brabourne Stadium from Pune, was given a go ahead barely an hour before the start of play after Delhi keeper-batter Tim Seifert tested positive on Wednesday morning.
It was Delhi’s third win in six games while Punjab suffered their fourth loss in seven games. Earlier,
Punjab were tottering at 35/2 after losing openers Mayank Agarwal (24) and Shikhar Dhawan (9) early.
Liam Livingstone, the Kings X-factor of the season, made a premeditated charge down the wicket in the sixth over. But Axar Patel beat him in length and Rishabh Pant had all the time to whip the bails off. At 47 for three, the Kings had had another forgettable PowerPlay.
Mayank, who recovered from his toe injury that forced him to miss the previous game, started with a cut for a boundary. Off-spinner Lalit removed Dhawan (9) cheaply, after the left-handed batter’s attempted paddle resulted in a nick to Rishab Pant .
Punjab were soon reeling at 46/3, as Axar struck in his first over removing the in-form Liam Livingstone (2), who was stumped by Pant. Wickets kept on tumbling for Punjab as Jonny Bairstow (9) gifted a sitter to Mustafizur at fine-leg in the seventh over off Khaleel Ahmed (2/21).
From 85/5, it became 92/8 within no time as Punjab lost wickets in quick succession.
