Atreyo Mukhopadhyay
Revsportz looks at five takeaways from Rajasthan Royals’ crushing 57-run victory over the Delhi Capitals.
Contrasting first overs
How often does one see two such weirdly contrasting first overs in a T20 match? It was 20-0 when Delhi Capitals bowled, and 0-2 when Rajasthan Royals did. Mirror image, anyone? It’s probably not fair to say that this is where the game was decided, but the opening overs certainly set the trend for the day. Impetus is crucial when it comes to T20 games, and it was like chalk and cheese when it came to the first overs. Both the bowlers were left-armers. That is where the similarities between Khaleel Ahmed and Trent Boult ended. Boult was making the ball talk. Unfortunately, Khaleel was getting people to talk rather disapprovingly about what he did.
Two Mumbai openers
One is left-handed and the other right. That’s not the only contrast between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Prithvi Shaw. Junior-level show-stoppers at the Mumbai local level, they also made their mark while playing for India in the under-19 World Cup. But the way things have gone for them in the IPL, one has to say the left-hander is racing ahead of his senior as far as likely India selection is concerned. They are similar in terms of attitude. Both are fearless and prefer taking on the attack from the beginning. But their IPL results have been massively different. Jaiswal is coming good after a season of disappointment. Shaw is underperforming after a few middling seasons.
What a catch!
Sometimes, we go overboard while appreciating an effort. But let’s come to this. Sanju Samson snapping that one up was more than phenomenal. It was a delivery bowled from over the wicket by a left-armer, which means the wicketkeeper could have anticipated the angle. But the right-handed Shaw shaped up for a nudge on the leg side at the last moment. The keeper had every reason to get confused by that late movement of the batter. And when Boult’s ball took the outside edge, Samson had to reconfigure, and go to his right after being left perplexed. And the ball was dipping and dying when he had to go for it. He re-adjusted his position and took it one-handed. Phenomenal.
Capital critical?
There is reason to be worried if you are the Delhi Capitals. Look at the faces in the dugout. There are two illustrious former international captains like Ricky Ponting and Sourav Ganguly sitting there. They have built a team which looks so promising on paper. There is ammunition, ambition and a lot of other important ingredients. When you have that, three defeats in three matches is a huge, huge disappointment. One does not know where their campaign is going to go from here. Top-order batting is something they have to address, along with the overall management of the entire set-up. This is a unit structured with a lot of care and investment. They cannot afford to fall apart like this.
Royal rising?
These are early days, no doubt, and there is not much to read into the fact that Rajasthan Royals were topping the table after humbling Delhi Capitals. Just three matches played, long way to go and all that. But there is some verve in their ranks. Jaiswal and Buttler are serious headaches for the bowlers from other teams. They have Samson and Shimron Hetmyer, among others, after that. The bowling unit has a lot of variety and experience. There is a lot of talent, hunger and passion in that squad. They are eager to do well and rise above predictions. They look like the team to beat at the moment. Be very, very wary when you cross paths with them.