IPL 2021, PBKS vs DC: Shikhar Dhawan trumps Mayank Agarwal as Delhi beat Punjab, top points table
IPL 2021: With Punjab Kings captain and prolific scorer, KL Rahul, out with acute appendicitis that will require a surgery, fellow opener Agarwal was handed the mantle for the game in Ahmedabad.
A lot was asked of Mayank Agarwal in the lead up to the game against Delhi Capitals in the IPL on Sunday. With Punjab Kings captain and prolific scorer, KL Rahul, out with acute appendicitis that will require a surgery, fellow opener Agarwal was handed the mantle for the game in Ahmedabad.
Also, apart from a 69 in the first leg against Delhi, Agarwal didn’t have much to show this edition coming into the game. He responded to the challenges in splendid fashion, scoring a 58-ball 99* on captaincy debut. Off the first 29 balls, Agarwal had scored only 35 with three fours. Off the next 29 deliveries, he accelerated with 64 runs (3x4, 4x6). None from his team could even reach 30. That singular effort meant Punjab Kings put up a respectable 166/6 in 20 overs.
However, a dashing performance from rival opener Shikhar Dhawan took Delhi home in 17.4 overs. He scored 69 off 47 balls, his third half-century of this edition. It helped Delhi climb to the top of the table with 12 points in eight games.
Delhi’s chase began in right earnest with opener Prithvi Shaw extending his red-hot form as he struck Mohammed Shami for 14 runs in the second over. He had raced to 39 off 21 balls when Punjab’s latest sensation, left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar, weaved his magic to bowl him out in the seventh over. Brar got the ball to drift in as Shaw committed forward only to see the ball whiz past him on to the stumps. Delhi were 63/1.
Dhawan used his experience and good form to ensure Delhi always stayed on course despite the loss of Steve Smith (24) and Rishabh Pant (14). He took a special liking for leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi (0/42) and Shami (0/37) as the Pant-led side cruised to their sixth win in eight matches.
