Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting has admitted that not bowling Ravichandran Ashwin his full quota of four overs might have cost them the game against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Meanwhile, Delhi went downhill thanks to Chris Morris going berserk in the death overs. The Proteas all-rounder struck 36 off 18 to give Rajasthan a much-needed victory in IPL 2021.
Defending 148 runs, Delhi Capitals made a good start reducing Rajasthan Royals to 42 for five with Chris Woakes and Avesh Khan doing the bulk of the damage. But David Miller steered the innings with a half-century before million dollar man Chris Morris won it for his side. Morris took on Kagiso Rabada and Tom Curran to go past the target in the 20th over.
Not giving Ravichandran Ashwin the fourth over was a mistake – Ricky Ponting
Meanwhile, Ravichandran Ashwin, who was off-colors against Chennai Super Kings, found his rhythm back against Rajasthan. In his three-over spell, he gave away just 14 runs without a wicket, not even having conceded a boundary. With two left-handers in the middle, Ashwin should’ve been Delhi Capitals’ go-to bowler to try and nip the game in the bud. Yet, Rishabh Pant went to Marcus Stoinis that turned the game around, swinging momentum in Rajasthan’s favour. Stoinis conceded 15 runs that over with a well-set David Miller hitting him for three consecutive fours.
Ashwin eventually didn’t get the fourth over as Rajasthan Royals chased down the target with two balls to spare. Speaking at the end of the game, Ricky Ponting conceded that not giving Ravichandran Ashwin his fourth over was a mistake and he would like to talk about that when he sits with the squad.
“That’s certainly something that we will talk about when I get a chance to sit down with the team,” Ricky Ponting, DC’s head coach, said after the game. “He had bowled beautifully. Three overs, none for 14. Hadn’t even conceded a boundary. He had a disappointing game in game one, but he has worked really hard in the last few days to make sure he adjusted and got things right in this game. I thought he bowled beautifully tonight. Probably a mistake on our behalf, and something we will be talking about later on,” Ricky Ponting added.
With one win and one defeat, Delhi Capitals are placed fourth in the IPL 2021 points table. Next up, they face Punjab Kings on April 18 (Sunday) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.