The Delhi
Capitals secured top spot in the Indian Premier League point table with a
thrilling 18-run victory over the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in yet another
high-scoring affair at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
The win
continues two important trends in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2020, one
of which is that teams that bat first end up winning, as has been the case with
12 of the 16 matches so far.
The other being
that of over 400 runs being scored in every match in Sharjah so far.
The three matches
played in Sharjah so far have produced 1,303 runs in total, including Rajasthan
Royals breaking the IPL record for the highest successful chase at this venue,
as they scored 226 in reply to Kings XI Punjab’s 223-run total.
Eoin Morgan
(48 from 18) and Rahul Tripathi (36 from 16) brought KKR back from the dead as
the duo put up 63 runs in overs three overs to put the Kolkata outfit on the
brink of a historic win.
Also Read: Delhi Capitals’ Prithvi Shaw hits 6th IPL fifty, continues fine form vs Kolkata Knight Riders
However, the
loss of Morgan in the 19th over knocked the stuffing out of the Kolkata
fightback and the Dinesh Karthik-led side was dead and buried after Aussie all-rounder
Marcus Stoinis accounted for Tripathi’s wicket early in the 20th
over.
Earlier,
Shubman Gill (28 from 22) and Nitish Rana (58 from 35) helped stabilise the
innings after Anrich Nortje castled Sunil Narine in the second over.
Delhi
posted a mammoth 228-run total as skipper Shreyas Iyer (88 from 38) and opener
Prithvi Shaw (66 from 41) starred with the bat, taking the Kolkata bowling
attack to the cleaners.
Also Read: Vintage Virat Kohli gives Royal Challengers Bangalore an eight-wicket win vs Rajasthan Royals
They were
well-supported by opener Shikhar Dhawan who was dismissed by spinner Varun
Chakravarty right at the end of the first powerplay.
The win
elevates the Delhi to the summit of the IPL points table with six points from
four games, level with Royal Challengers Bangalore, although their superior net
run rate keeps them above the Virat Kohli-led side. KKR occupy fifth position
on the table.
