"It was one of the best deliveries you'll ever see" - Irfan Pathan hails Ishant Sharma's final over heroics against GT in IPL 2023

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has heaped praise on veteran Delhi Capitals (DC) pacer Ishant Sharma for his incredible final over against the Gujarat Titans (GT) that helped the visitors win by five runs.

Ishant had to defend 12 runs off the final over with Hardik Pandya having already scored a half-century and Rahul Tewatia, who had just smashed three sixes off three deliveries against Anrich Nortje. However, the veteran pacer delivered under pressure, dismissing Tewatia and conceding just six runs.

Speaking to Star Sports, Irfan Pathan shed light on how good Ishant Sharma was under pressure and also pointed out the variations he has added to his repertoire, like the knuckleball with which he cleaned up Vijay Shankar. Pathan said:

"Keeping a batter like Rahul Tewatia silent, Ishant once again proved his mettle. Ishant used the knuckle balls to perfection. It was the use of deception with action, pace and variation at its very best. It was one of the best deliveries you'll ever see."

---

Ishant Sharma on his plans to Rahul Tewatia

After the game, Ishant Sharma opened up on how he planned his deliveries to Rahul Tewatia. The southpaw was looking for an opportunity to clear the boundary, but Ishant stuck to his plans of bowling wide outside his hitting arc.

The veteran pacer stated:

"I played enough cricket him (Tewatia), so was just having fun with him. I knew I had to double bluff him otherwise we know what he can do with the bat. We (The bowlers) don't think about the target, it is just about executing the plans."

Delhi are still in 10th position in the points table and cannot afford any slip-ups as they need to win all their remaining games to have a chance of making it to the playoffs.

​