Delhi Capital continues to consolidate their place in the top four of IPL 2021. Last season’s runners-up bounced back quickly from agonising one run defeat against Royal Challengers Bangalore by delivering a complete performance against Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday at Narendra Modi Stadium.
Meanwhile, KKR continues to struggle in all departments. Even though they defeated Punjab Kings this week, but there has been no significant improvement in overall performances. Here are key takeaways from KKR’s latest defeat in IPL 2021.
Avesh Khan continues to shine for Delhi Capitals
Delhi Capitals never allowed KKR to get some sort of momentum during their innings. All bowlers stuck to their plans, but Avesh Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Delhi. The young pace bowler from Indore has been one of the revelations of IPL 2021.
Khan is bowling difficult overs for Delhi Capitals with great control on lines and lengths. He took the crucial wicket of well-set Shubman Gill, which effectively broke the back of KKR’s batting unit. Khan ended up with 1/31 in his four overs. The numbers may not reflect his astute bowling as he kept Andre Russell quiet in the death overs. As of now, Khan is the most reliable pace bowler for Delhi this season.
Nothing is working out for KKR in the bowling department
KKR has struggled this season while defending a total. They managed to keep Sunrisers Hyderabad at bay in the first game, but since then, KKR has consistently failed to even mount a good challenge against the chasing team. On Thursday, the move to hold back Pat Cummins didn’t go down well for them.
Prithvi Shaw had effectively won the game for Delhi in powerplay overs. Even when he was going all guns blazing in the first five overs, Morgan decided to bring Cummins at the end of the powerplay. The Australian bowler ended up with 3/24, but the damage was done early. It was yet another experiment from KKR’s think tank that failed this season.
Prithvi Shaw making a strong case for the Indian team
Shaw was the match-winner for Delhi by scoring 82 runs in 41 deliveries. There was elegance in all shots he played during this whirlwind knock. He set the tone for the chase by smashing six boundaries in the first over. Thursday’s innings meant Shaw now has three half-centuries to his name this season, staking a strong claim for making a return to the Indian team.
There is a lot of competition for the opening slot in the Indian T-20 team. However, a remarkable IPL campaign after a record-breaking Vijay Hazare Trophy will make sure that Shaw will give a welcome headache to the selection committee.