The comeback hero Rishabh Pant put an end to a four-year-long unwanted streak on Wednesday (April 17) as Delhi Capitals humbles Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in the 32nd game of the Indian Premier League season 17.
The Delhi captain claimed his first Player of the Match (POTM) award for the first time in the cash-rich league since the 2019 edition. The southpaw's previous Player of the Match performance had come in the Eliminator of IPL 2019 against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
The game started with the fortune on his side as Rishabh won the toss and asked Gujarat Titans to set a score on the board. The decision bore fruit as the hosts got bundled out for just 89 in 17.3 overs.
While the credit largely goes to the Delhi bowlers who stuck to their tasks and applied relentless pressure on the Titans batters right from the outset, Pant's leadership was immensely impressive as the 26-year-old rotated his bowlers well and didn't give any reprieve to the hosts.
Pant was brilliant behind the stumps as he took two catches and enforced two stumpings to support his bowlers and restricted Titans to a below-par total.
Chasing 90 to win, Delhi were expected to cruise to the target without much fuss but their batters got out after getting their eyes in and it required their captain to get the job done with the willow in hand.
Pant scored an unbeaten 16 off 11 balls at a strike rate of 145.45 with the help of a four and a six and helped Delhi get over the line.
"Lots of things to be pleased about. We spoke about the champion mindset and our team spoke about it. (Best bowling effort of IPL 2024?) Definitely one of the best. Still early in the tournament and we can still improve from here," said Pant after the win.
The win has helped Delhi surpass Gujarat on the points table. Delhi are sixth with a total of six points in seven games and are still in contention for a spot in the playoffs.
