Delhi Capitals (DC) had a strange bowling strategy against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 21. Abhishek Sharma single-handedly demolished all the planning of the opposing team as the opener scored 135 runs off 68 deliveries with ten 4s and ten 6s.
In front of the aggressive batter, who was scoring runs for fun, DC captain Axar Patel allowed Nitish Rana, who is a part-time spinner, to complete his full 4 overs quota. In comparison, Patel himself and Kuldeep Yadav delivered 2 overs each. After the match, Former Australia skipper Aaron Finch raised a question about the mindset of the Delhi captain.
Axar Patel wanted to take the ball away from Abhishek Sharma
On paper, the Delhi Capitals possess one of the most lethal spin combinations in the presence of two Team India stars- Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. The question is natural: why did the skipper himself not come forward to take the wicket of Abhishek Sharma, and why did he not use the 4 overs of Kuldeep Yadav either?
Patel intended to take the ball away from the SRH openers- Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head- by taking the pace off the ball. With that intended, he chose Nitish Rana, for whom it was the 27th time in 122 matches that he has bowled in the IPL and the second time that he’s finished his full quota.
“We’ve been sitting there scratching our heads, haven’t we? Your two Indian premier spin bowlers, Axar Patel, the skipper [2-0-23-1], and Kuldeep Yadav [2-0-30-0], bowled four overs between them. A part-time off-spinner in Nitish Rana has wheeled out four overs. To me, that makes no sense,” Aaron Finch said on ESPNcricinfo’s Time Out show.
Patel outplayed Sharma twice prior to the match
In fact, Axar Patel has had a pretty good track record against the Sunrisers Hyderabad opener Abhishek Sharma: 2 wickets in eight balls for six runs in the IPL.
Abhishek Sharma vs Axar Patel on April 21:
|
Total Number of Runs |
1s |
2s |
3s |
4s |
6s |
|
11 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
Finch explained that by avoiding Sharma, Patel actually exposed his defending mentality.
Patel got a great defensive mindset: Aaron Finch
“He’s got a great defensive mindset with the ball in hand, too. “He’s not somebody that you know. If he’s under pressure, he’ll float one up in the slot. He defends himself. He changes angles. He uses his range, his height to his advantage as well,” Aaron Finch said.
“So even when you’re thinking defensively, that’s attacking against Abhishek Sharma when he’s in a mood like that. You bowl a couple of decent balls, and you know that something will happen,” he added.
After the match, Patel claimed that they misexecuted their plans against the opposing batters. However, Finch has different thoughts. He believes that despite having tools in their arsenal, the Delhi Capitals showed not enough will to utilize those.
“I’m looking at those comments saying, well hang on, boss, you had the chance as well, but you’re not willing to stand up at the moment either,” the former cricketer further claimed.
Read More: Ravichandran Ashwin urges CSK to loan 19-year-old sensation from RCB as Ayush Mhatre’s replacement
