When the Rajasthan Royals' skipper Sanju Samson chose to field first in the 56th match of IPL (Indian Premier League) 2024, he was cognizant of the challenge that lay ahead.
Samson and his bowlers were prepared for Jake Fraser-McGurk but were taken by surprise when a 21-year-old uncapped Indian player launched an onslaught against them.
When Rajasthan Royals got rid of Fraser-McGurk on the second delivery of the fifth over most of their bowlers took a sigh of relief.
However, Abishek Porel who was promoted up the order to accompany Fraser-McGurk in the middle, picked up from where the Aussie left and hammered the Rajasthan Royals' bowling attack.
The southpaw didn't let the momentum shift towards the other camp and kept battering the bowlers as and when they erred in line and length.
He played a quick-fire knock of 65 off just 36 deliveries and forced Sanju to keep a defensive field in play during his stay in the middle.
His knock comprised seven fours and three maximums and came at a strike rate of 180.55.
It was Porel's innings that allowed Delhi to finish well past the 200-run mark and helped them claim their sixth win of the season.
Porel's knock against Rajasthan didn't surprise those who saw him bat against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in the 35th match of the ongoing season.
Chasing 267 to win, Delhi needed their batters to go hell from leather from ball one and Abishek who was asked to bat at No. four followed suit.
He hammered a quick-fire 42 off 22 balls at a strike rate of 190.90 with seven fours and a six to give the Delhi fans some hope however it wasn't enough as they lost the contest by 67 runs.
Hence, Porel has shown that he has the calibre to perform at this level. He just needs to find more consistency with the willow in hand.
