Lucknow, April 1 (IANS) Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel credited his side’s awareness and execution with the ball for setting up a six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants, highlighting how they made the most of helpful new-ball conditions before sealing the chase through a crucial middle-overs partnership.

“Game finished early, got close in the middle. The new ball was doing a bit, our chat was about a big partnership, and we finished well. Happy with bowling. We knew it swung and seamed at the start. We told that to all new bowlers, and they did well,” said Axar Patel after the match.

Mukesh Kumar set the tone with an exceptional new-ball spell, conceding less than a run a ball in the powerplay while extracting swing and seam and keeping Mitchell Marsh quiet outside off. Axar Patel then struck in trademark fashion, deceiving Aiden Markram with a skiddy, angled delivery soon after being hit for six, as DC restricted LSG to 48/2. The collapse continued with Ayush Badoni edging T Natarajan, before Lungi Ngidi produced a stunning slower ball to outfox Nicholas Pooran.

Delhi tightened their grip as Marsh fell for 35 attempting to take on Kuldeep Yadav, while debutant Mukul Choudhary showed brief promise with a quick 14 before being undone by a googly. Abdul Samad offered resistance with 36 but was eventually dismissed by Natarajan, triggering a late collapse where the rest managed just three runs. Ngidi and Natarajan led the charge with three wickets each, while Kuldeep chipped in with two, sealing a dominant bowling performance for DC.

“During the strategic time-out, we passed on the same message that we were just one good partnership away from getting ourselves into a good position. Both of them finished off well in the end. There’s a big boundary, and I felt that since the pitch was assisting pacers, I’d bowl them over me. The plan was to bring in Rizvi early. Ashutosh Sharma was also an option if the innings started well. Last year, Ashu proved himself in the first game, and this time, Rizvi. He’s been excellent at practice, glad he pulled it off tonight,” he added.

Sameer Rizvi played an important role under pressure, proving the Delhi Capitals made the right choice by selecting him as the Impact Player over options like Karun Nair and Ashutosh Sharma. After a tough start where he struggled to score, making 0 off 9 and then 5 off 13 against LSG’s strong seam bowlers, Rizvi steadied himself to build a partnership of 119 runs off 76 with Tristan Stubbs.

He took full advantage of the little spin available, attacking Shahbaz Ahmed and Aiden Markram aggressively, hitting four fours and a six in their overs. By reaching a well-earned fifty off 37 balls, Rizvi’s innings was key in shifting the momentum and putting DC in a strong position in a tough chase.

–IANS

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