IPL 6 : DD v/s SRH - The Quick Flicks
Venue: Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
The match started with good news for the Daredevils fans when they learnt that homeboy Virender Sehwag was set to play his first match of this year’s IPL. The Hyderabad fans, meanwhile, might have to wait a little bit longer as there has been no word yet on the expected return of opener Shikhar Dhawan. Delhi captain Mahela Jayawardene won the toss and elected to bat first.
Steyn and Ishant rattle Delhi upfront
Dale Steyn has been nothing short of brilliant this season and he was at his blistering best right from the start, sending the little pocket dynamo, David Warner, back without troubling the scorers. His partner Ishant, after a poor first over, went one better and got the all-important scalps of Jayawardene and Sehwag just when they were starting to look dangerous.
5 Overs – Delhi 28/3 with their three best batsmen back in the hut – Advantage Hyderabad.
One of those days…
It was one of those days where everything that could go wrong for Delhi did go wrong; the batsmen fell quickly and cheaply, a few got starts but were stupid enough to throw them away – Johan Botha and Manpreet Juneja, the chief culprits here. Irfan Pathan tried hard but his struggle yielded nothing except an unconvincing twenty-odd runs added to the board.
Jadhav saves the day
The Pune-born batsman finally got going and ensured Delhi reached a respectable total – respectable meaning a score above 100 in this case. On a flat track which offered little assistance to the bowlers, it was Jadhav who made the most of the situation and his quickfire cameo of 30 from 20 balls, which included a couple of huge blows, was a cheerful end to a horrid evening for the supporters.
Delhi: 114/8 after 20 overs.
Pathan, Kaul strike early
The Delhi Daredevils made a great start with the ball with Irfan Pathan and young paceman Uday Kaul both bowling tight lines to restrict the early flow of runs for the Sunrisers.
Sanga, Patel get things going
The experience of Sangakkara and Patel soon saw them guide Sunrisers out of the woods as both of them settled in nicely and the match appeared under control for Hyderabad before Mahela introduced his spinners.
Botha, Nadeem bring the crowd to life
Both Nadeem and Ojha bowled a very tight line and frustrated the batsmen in the middle. They soon got their reward as Botha dismissed the dangerous Sangakkara and the teams went into time-out one, with Hyderabad needing 66 from 66.
Delhi smell blood
It got better for the Daredevils as White soon departed, Hyderabad appeared to be panicking and Delhi looked set to finally win their first match of this year’s IPL.
Mishra, Steyn finally land the killer punch
The match continued to be on a knife’s edge and it went all the way to the last over, with the requirement of 6 runs from 6 balls. Steyn and Mishra were at the crease with Pathan bowling the last over. It however, turned out to be a dampener of sorts when two wayward deliveries allowed Steyn to hit a couple and a boundary and help Sunrisers register their 3rd win in 4 matches, whereas Delhi are still on the lookout for that elusive first win which will help kickstart their campaign.