Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw
Prithvi Shaw joined forces with Shikhar Dhawan as the opening pair steered Delhi Capitals to a comprehensive seven-wicket win in their opening IPL 2021 fixture against Chennai Super Kings on Saturday. The opening duo of Shaw and Dhawan ran riot at Wankhede as the Chennai bowling unit looked hapless on the day.
Dhawan and Shaw's 138-run stand was the second-highest against CSK. Dhawan also eclipsed Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli to become the highest run-getter against CSK in all T20 competitions.
While Shaw scored 72 from 38, Dhawan finished with a 54-ball 85 to turn the run-chase into an uncomplicated one. Despite the exit of Shaw and Dhawan, the Delhi batting unit didn't flounder towards the end, with skipper Rishabh Pant winding things up for his side with a boundary.
Shaw's exuberant batting show came to an end in the 14th over when fell prey to Dwayne Bravo's quicker delivery. Capitals' newly-appointed skipper Rishabh Pant added final touches with his unbeaten 15 off 12 deliveries, taking his side past the finishing line with eight balls to spare.
Earlier, Raina marked his IPL return with a brilliant half-century. The left-hander, who had opted out of last year's IPL citing personal reasons, hit a brilliant 36-ball 54 and powered the Chennai outfit to a solid 188 on the Wankhede strip.
While Raina anchored CSK's innings, all-rounder Sam Curran notched up a blazing 34 off only 15 deliveries. Curran's late fireworks helped Chennai gather 52 runs in the last five overs.
After being put to bat first, CSK tumbled in the powerplay as openers Faf du Plessis (0) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (5) walked back in the second and third over respectively.
Raina, however, teamed up with Moeen Ali to steady Chennai's ship. The duo stitched a 53-run stand before Ali was caught while attempting a reverse hit off Ashwin's delivery. The England all-rounder departed after scoring 36 from 24 deliveries which included 4 fours and 2 sixes.
Rayudu, the next man in, managed to put up a 16-ball 23 cameo before Tom Curran plucked his wicket. Dhoni also faltered while attempting to pull Avesh Khan. The ball took the CSK skipper's under-edge to castle the woodwork. For Delhi, Khan and Chris Woakes picked two wickets each while Ashwin and Tom added a scalp each under their belt.
Brief Scores:
CSK 188/7 (Suresh Raina 54, Moeen Ali 36, Sam Curran 34; Avesh Khan 2/23, Chris Woakes 2/18)
DC 190 for 3 in 18.4 overs (Prithvi Shaw 72 off 38 balls, Shikhar Dhawan 85 off 54 balls).
