IPL 2017: Why RPS players were wearing black armbands against DD
As a gesture of respect for the passing away of the father of middle-order batsman Manoj Tiwary, the Rising Pune Supergiant players were seen wearing black armbands on their shoulders during their game against the Delhi Daredevils in Pune on Tuesday. The 31-year-old did not feature in the playing XI because of the bereavement and was replaced by Rahul Tripathi, who made his debut for the side.
Tiwary played a crucial hand with the bat in the previous game against the Kings XI Punjab at Indore, making 40 important runs and putting on a vital stand of 61 runs with Ben Stokes that helped the Steve Smith-led side recover from a difficult position and post a competitive total on the board.
The team were dealt another blow ahead of the game on Tuesday as Smith also could not take the field because of a stomach bug and hence Ajinkya Rahane had to step in to lead the side in his place. Faf du Plessis took the Australian’s place in the playing XI and will in all likelihood bat at the Number 3 spot.
Extra Cover: IPL Live Score: Rising Pune Supergiant vs Delhi Daredevils
The team also made a change in the bowling as well, bringing in Adam Zampa for Rahul Chahar, who played the last game against the Kings XI. The Twitter handle of the franchise tweeted the news of Tiwary’s father passing away ahead of the game and offered their condolences as well.
The Pune franchise have had a mixed start to the competition so far, having won their first game against the Mumbai Indians on Friday, thanks to a captain’s innings by Smith, but losing their second game against the Kings XI Punjab away from home at Indore. Incidentally, that was the team’s eighth straight loss while batting first in their IPL history.