Ashutosh Sharma’s explosive 66 off 31 balls powered Delhi Capitals to a thrilling one-wicket victory over Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League on Monday.
Sharma sealed the win in spectacular fashion, smashing a straight six off left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed to take Delhi to 211-9 with three balls remaining. The loss marked a disappointing debut as captain for Rishabh Pant, the IPL’s most expensive player, who was dismissed for a six-ball duck.
Despite Pant’s early exit, Lucknow posted 209-8, thanks to blistering half-centuries from Nicholas Pooran (75) and Mitchell Marsh (72).
Sharma’s Stunning Knock Rescues Delhi
Lucknow appeared in control until Sharma turned the game around with an explosive partnership alongside Vipraj Nigam, who contributed a quick 39 off 15 balls.
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Delhi suffered a shaky start, losing four wickets in the powerplay. Shardul Thakur dismissed Jake Fraser-McGurk (1) and Abishek Porel (0) in his opening over. At 113-6 in the 13th over, when Tristan Stubbs was bowled by impact substitute Manimaran Siddharth for 34, Delhi’s chances looked bleak.
However, Sharma and Nigam launched a counterattack before Nigam was dismissed in the 17th over with Delhi still needing 42 runs from 23 balls. Marsh fell soon after, misreading Ravi Bishnoi’s googly and skying a catch to Pant, while Kuldeep Yadav was run out in the penultimate over trying to rotate the strike.
With six runs required in the final over, Mohit Sharma survived a close stumping call before taking a single off Ahmed. Sharma then wrapped up the game in style, smashing his fifth six to stun Lucknow.
Pooran and Marsh Set the Stage for Lucknow
Earlier, Pooran and Marsh set a strong foundation for Lucknow with a combined 13 sixes and 12 boundaries, though wickets tumbled quickly in the final overs.
Marsh, playing solely as a batter this IPL, partnered with Aiden Markram (15) in a 46-run opening stand, including 21 runs off Mitchell Starc’s (3-42) second over.
Leg-spinner Nigam made an immediate impact on his IPL debut, removing Markram with his fourth ball. But Pooran and Marsh then launched an aggressive assault, hammering the bowlers all over the ground.
Pooran, who was dropped on 17 by Sameer Rizvi, punished the bowlers by smashing three sixes off Nigam and four consecutive sixes off Tristan Stubbs in a 28-run over.
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Marsh’s innings ended in the 12th over when he holed out at long-on, while Pant’s struggle ended with a catch to Faf du Plessis off Kuldeep Yadav (2-20).
Starc, expensive in his first spell, made a strong comeback, cleaning up Pooran with a 140 kph delivery. Delhi’s bowlers tightened their grip, restricting Lucknow to just 49 runs in the last seven overs while taking six wickets.
David Miller added late fireworks, smashing two sixes off the final two balls to finish unbeaten on 27 off 19 deliveries.
Source: With input from agency