Delhi Daredevils were left to chase 71 runs in six overs. (Source: IPL)
Delhi Daredevils captain Gautam Gambhir said that while the wicket was great to bat on, a lack of overs affected his side. “It was a beautiful wicket to bat on,” said Gambhir at the post-match presentation ceremony, “One of the flattest wickets. Thought if we could contain them to 170, we had a good chance. We had to go from ball 1. There are hardly any balls, difficult for our batsmen.”
Delhi Daredevils had managed to restrict Rajasthan Royals before rain nearly wiped the match away. In the end, the Rajasthan Royals score was 153/5 and Delhi Daredevils were left to chase 71 runs in six overs. Rajasthan Royals managed to restrict them to 60/4. “Good way to start at home. We thought 71 was difficult to chase, focussing on things we could control,” said Rajasthan Royals captain Ajinkya Rahane, “When we were batting, we thought 165 to 170 would be good. T20 is all about starting from zero, whether we win or lose.”
Sanju Samson’s 37 off 22 balls is what lifted the Rajasthan Royals beyond the 150-run mark. “Feels amazing, we wanted a win at our home ground,” he said, “It’s about the preparation, we had four team camps.”
Delhi Daredevils are hence yet to open their account in this season of the IPL. Before this, they had lost the first game to Kings XI Punjab by six wickets. Rajasthan Royals also had a false start to the season, being flattened by Sunrisers Hyderabad and losing by nine wickets.