After a series of exciting affairs, the 32nd match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 produced a one-sided contest as Punjab Kings (PBKS) suffered decimation at the hands of Delhi Capitals (DC), where the latter earned an easy nine-wicket win at Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai, on Wednesday.
David Warner and Prithvi Shaw straightaway went for the attack in the chase of 116 runs as the Covid-hit Capitals aimed to give their Net Run-Rate (NRR) a major boost.
Both the openers made their intentions clear in Vaibhav Arora's second over, accumulating a total of 17 overs, smashing a flurry of boundaries. However, there was no respite for the PBKS bowlers as they had to suffer through all-out aggression from the DC opening pair.
Rahul Chahar eventually broke the 83-run stand as Shaw mistimed a slog sweep and departed for 41 runs.
While there was not much left to do, Warner was in a hurry and ended the match in partnership with Sarfaraz Khan. The Aussie brought up his third consecutive half-century and finished unbeaten at the score of 60 as DC chased the target in 10.3 overs.
Earlier, after being sent to bat, the Kings had no answers to tough questions raised by Delhi's pacers. Skipper Mayank Agarwal returned after a one-game break; he could not add much to the stuttering batting lineup as an inside-edge on Mustafizur Rahman's delivery rattled the stumps and ended his evening.
Shikhar Dhawan had an unfortunate dismissal, playing down the leg-side for a boundary but was caught by Rishabh Pant. PBKS again looked upon Liam Livingstone to steer them through as he has done in the tournament. Moreover, the Englishman put on his dancing shoes and walked down the track, only to see himself getting stumped by Axar Patel's delivery.
Jonny Bairstow's horrid season with the bat continued as he smashed one straight to Mustafizur's throat, who was stationed at the fine-leg.
Jitesh Sharma helped Punjab's cause a bit and started to show signs of aggression. However, the Vidarbha wicketkeeper-batsman failed to convert his start and perished after scoring 32 runs.
Shahrukh Khan's innings was full of mistimed strokes as he looked like a pale version of himself. His dismissal meant it was all over for PBKS as only tailenders were left to bat the remaining overs.
Arsheep Singh and Rahul Chahar managed to hit a few boundaries, but their attempt could only aid Punjab in achieving a trifling 115-run total. In the end, for his outstanding spell of bowling, Kuldeep Yadav walked away with the 'Player of the Match' title.
With this encounter, DC and PBKS swapped positions at the points table, with 6 points to their name. Next, the Capitals meet Rajasthan Royals on Friday while the wounded Kings take on the Chennai Super Kings on Monday.
Brief scores:
Punjab Kings - 115/10 (20)
Jitesh Sharma 32(23), Mayank Agarwal 24(15);
Axar Patel 10/2 (4), Lalit Yadav 11/2 (2)
Delhi Capitals - 119/1
David Warner 60(30), Prithvi Shaw 41(20);
Rahul Chahar 21/1 (2.3)
Delhi Capitals won by nine wickets