Former India opener blasts Delhi Capitals' decision after the loss to KKR
Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant surprisingly opted to bat first at Eden Gardens, a ground which is known as a difficult one to defend.
On Monday (April 29), Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed Delhi Capitals by 7 wickets. While KKR further solidified its position in the IPL 2024 points table, the Capitals succumbed to its sixth defeat of the season. The ground at Eden Gardens is a batting paradise and a difficult ground to defend.
It was evident in this year's IPL as well where the teams chasing had a clear advantage. In the last match played here, Punjab Kings successfully chased down a mammoth target of 262 runs set by Kolkata Knight Riders with 8 balls to spare. This was the highest successful run-chase in the history of IPL.
But despite knowing the fact, Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant suprisingly opted to bat first after winning the toss. Pant said at the toss that he wanted to put runs on the board. He also reasoned that the wicket was on the slower side and it could slow down further in the second innings. But his decision backfired as Capitals were reduced to a below par score of 153-9.
Wasim Jaffer blasts Delhi Capitals' decision after the loss to KKR
Punjab chased 261 in Kolkata few days back and surprisingly Delhi decided to bat 1st today. Wonder why is that? I'm sure they will have their reasons.#KKRvsDC #IPL24
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) April 29, 2024
Former India opener Wasim Jaffer slammed Rishabh Pant's decision to bat first. While taking to X, Jaffer mentioned that Delhi Capitals might have their own reasons.
"Punjab chased 261 in Kolkata few days back and surprisingly Delhi decided to bat 1st today. Wonder why is that? I'm sure they will have their reasons," Jaffer tweeted on X.
KKR's spinners played a key role in strangling DC's batting line-up with their outstanding display of variations. Sunil Narine picked up 1-24 while Varun Chakravarthy picked up match-winning figures of 3-16 in 4 overs. Pacers Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora also contributed with two wickets apiece.
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Chasing 154 to win, Kolkata Knight Riders' openers blasted away as they have done all throughout the season. Phil Salt and Sunil Narine took KKR to 79-0 in the first 6 overs. Salt smashed a brilliant 68 off 33 balls. Shreyas Iyer and Venkatesh Iyer stayed till the end and finished unbeaten on 33 and 26 respectively. KKR completed the target in 16.3 overs, thus giving their net run rate a big boost as well.
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