New Delhi, May 17 (IANS) Young seam-bowling all-rounder Madhav Tiwari credited the gripping nature of the wicket for his success with slower balls, as Delhi Capitals pulled off a stirring fightback with the ball to keep Rajasthan Royals to 193/8 in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday.

At 160/2 after 14 overs, the Royals appeared set for a massive total. But the momentum shifted after a brief stoppage for medical attention to Riyan Parag, who hit a 23-ball fifty. Axar Patel recalled Starc, who had gone for 28 in his first two overs, and the Australian responded with a decisive 15th over, removing Parag, Donovan Ferreira, and Ravi Singh, before taking out Impact Player Dasun Shanaka to pick 4-40.

Tiwari, who impressed with both bat and ball on debut against Punjab Kings in Dharamshala, once again stood out by dismissing a marauding Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Shubham Dubey.

“Coming into this IPL season, I just thought that I’m gonna take in four or five variations with me and I’m gonna back them throughout the season. So, I have been working on them, and hopefully, the results are helping in my favor.

“I guess there was a bit of help from the wicket. It was gripping, and so I thought that I could use more of them. I was just looking to put myself (in) a high‑pressure situation in the nets themselves. So bowling to Miller and bowling to Ashutosh and KL helped me. I was just trying to figure out how I’m gonna bowl against these batsmen, which is gonna help me in this tournament,” said Tiwari in a mid-innings chat with the broadcasters.

Lungi Ngidi closed out the innings with clever variations, as RR eventually made 193/8, after losing six wickets for 33 runs in the last six overs. “I don’t know. I have to ask them,” said Tiwari, when asked about his family’s reaction, before adding that DC can chase down the target and aim to end their home leg on a high. “I think we’ll get it.”

–IANS

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