Kuldeep, Shardul star with ball vs Punjab after Marsh bats deep on difficult pitch
Punjab Kings' boom-or-bust batting approach came back to haunt them as they messed up their chances of qualifying for the playoffs after surrendering to the Delhi Capitals by 17 runs in a must-win contest on Monday.
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AS IT HAPPENEDSCORECARDPOINTS TABLE
Punjab batters dug their own graves with irresponsible shot selection on a slow track at the DY Patil Stadium, as Delhi Capitals rode on pacer Shardul Thakur's impressive four-wicket haul to bolster their chances of qualifying for the top four.
1/10:Delhi beat Punjab
<p>A gritty half-century by Mitchell Marsh and Shardul Thakur's four wickets kept Delhi Capitals in the hunt for an IPL play-off spot with a 17-run win over Punjab Kings on Monday. (BCCI/IPL Photo)</p>
2/10:Mitchell Marsh
<p>Marsh's 63 off 48 balls guided Delhi to 159-7 against a disciplined Punjab attack led by Liam Livingstone who returned figures of 3-27 with his off and leg-spin in Mumbai. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
3/10:Shardul Thakur
<p>Delhi defended the total with Thakur returning figures of 4-36 from his four overs to restrict the opposition to 142-9. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
4/10:Liam Livingstone
<p>Delhi got off to a horror start after being put into bat first when David Warner fell first ball to Livingstone's off spin, giving away catch to backward point. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
5/10:Arshdeep Singh
<p>Fellow opener Sarfaraz Khan hit back with a 16-ball 32 before falling to Arshdeep Singh who ended with three wickets. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
6/10:Rishabh Pant
<p>Marsh stood firm as Livingstone rattled the middle order with key wickets of skipper Rishabh Pant (7) and Rovman Powell (2). (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
7/10:Boost to Delhi's total
<p>Marsh attacked, batted with composure when wickets fell and then accelerated in his knock laced with three sixes to boost Delhi's total. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
8/10:Jonny Bairstow
<p>In reply, Jonny Bairstow smashed a 15-ball 28 but his departure and twin strikes in the sixth over by Thakur to send back Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Shikhar Dhawan hurt Punjab's chase. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
9/10:Axar Patel
<p>Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav got the big wickets of skipper Mayank Agarwal, for nought, and Livingstone, for three. Axar and Kuldeep took two wickets each. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>
10/10:Jitesh Sharma
<p>Punjab slipped to 82-7 before Jitesh Sharma gave Delhi a scare with his 34-ball 44 but Thakur got him out with Warner taking a good low catch at long-off. (BCCI/IPL/PTI Photo)</p>Thakur overcame a lean patch to spearhead the turnaround in Delhi's favour with the twin strikes of Bhanuka Rajapaksha (4) and Shikhar Dhawan (19) within three deliveries, and later came back to remove Jitesh Sharma (44), and Kagiso Rabada (6).
Delhi's demolition act came in a matter of 15 deliveries as Punjab were reduced from a comfortable 52/1 to a precarious 55/4, before the spin twins Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav paired up to further dent the red and gold brigade's hopes. Anrich Nortje had removed the dangerous Jonny Bairstow (28) early on to disrupt the chase.
Axar and Kuldeep shared four wickets between them to strengthen Delhi's grasp over the contest. While Patel cleaned up skipper Mayank Agarwal (0) and Rishi Dhawan (4), Kuldeep got the key wicket of the in-form Liam Livingstone (3), stumped by the skipper Rishabh Pant, and later Harpreet Brar (1).
Earlier, Mitchell Marsh was forced to change gears midway, as he anchored the innings with a steady 48-ball 63 to help Delhi put on 159/7 after a slump.
Cruising at over nine runs an over, Delhi initially looked on course for a bigger total, but squandered their chances with some needless shots after being comfortably placed at 67/2 at the end of the Powerplay.
The Capitals successfully recovered from the early jolt of David Warner's duck, as fellow Sarfaraz Khan and Marsh added 51 runs in the first four overs, before the introduction of Arshdeep Singh changed the complexion of the first innings.
