Rizvi 90 helps Delhi Capitals take down Mumbai Indians

Sameer Rizvi's whirlwind 90 off only 51 balls, which included seven fours and as many sixes, made it two in two for Delhi Capitals as they moved to the top of the points table with a six-wicket win against Mumbai Indians which was achieved with 1.5 overs in the afternoon game at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday (April 4).

Match in phases

Brief scores: Mumbai Indians 162/6 in 20 overs [Suryakumar Yadav 51 (36), Rohit Sharma 35 (26); Mukesh Kumar 2-26, Axar Patel 1-22) lost to Delhi Capitals 164/4 in 18.1 overs [Sameer Rizvi 90 (51), Pathum Nissanka 44 (30); Deepak Chahar 1-20) by 6 wickets.

Who won the match?

Sameer Rizvi. The how, follows...

The Rizvi show

The 22-year-old Rizvi, who came in as the impact player, struggled to get going but Pathum Nissanka was finding the boundaries to make sure DC kept pace with the asking rate. The Sri Lankan also got a reprieve, put down by Naman Dhir off Corbin Bosch. In the same over, Rizvi, batting on 11 off 17, struck an audacious six by whipping over square leg. Rizvi also hit a four off Mitchell Santner before the left-arm spinner had Nissanka top edge a pull, leaving DC at 73/3 at the halfway stage, the exact same score as Mumbai Indians.

It became 93/3 after 11 overs, 13 more than MI at that stage, as DC landed the counter-punches. Rizvi struck two sixes and two fours off Bosch in a 20-run 11th over, followed by two sixes off Mayank Markande to take DC past 100 and ease the pressure on them. The 13th over from Jasprit Bumrah yielded a solitary run, but Rizvi made up for it with a four and a six off Chahar. A half-century stand followed, with David Miller contributing just one run, as Rizvi single-handedly took DC towards the finish line, bringing the equation down to 25 off 30 when he hit two fours and a six off Thakur. Miller, on 2 off 6, made the equation even easier with two fours off Bumrah. Rizvi, looking good for a century, fell 10 short as he mistimed a loft off Bosch, it was a job well done, with Miller and Tristan Stubbs completing the formalities.

What caused DC's early stutter?

An early double setback put DC on the back foot. KL Rahul was caught down the leg side off the fourth ball of the innings, bowled by Deepak Chahar. Soon after, a sharp direct hit from Bumrah caught Nitish Rana short, leaving DC two down early.The response came through Nissanka, who kept the innings moving with regular boundaries and a six off Shardul Thakur. While DC finished the Powerplay with only one more run than MI, they did well to absorb two overs from Bumrah in that phase and avoid further damage, before Rizvi took the MI bowling apart.

How did DC apply the squeeze after opting to bowl?

It stemmed from early strikes by Mukesh Kumar. After MI's openers struck two fours each in the first two overs, Mukesh pulled things back in the third, with Ryan Rickelton mistiming one and Tilak Varma falling to a well-disguised knuckle ball. That double strike ensured two right-handers at the crease, allowing Axar Patel and Vipraj Nigam to operate in the Powerplay. Both kept things tight, controlling the scoring rate and restricting MI to 41/2 at the end of six overs.

Why couldn't the MI batters press on?

The middle overs never quite opened up. Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma built a steady partnership, but on a slow surface, DC's spinners didn't allow easy scoring options. Axar was particularly effective, finishing with 1 for 22 and dismissing Rohit at a key moment, while Nigam accounted for Sherfane Rutherford. There was a brief counter when Suryakumar and Dhir took on Kuldeep Yadav for a couple of sixes, but it didn't shift the overall pattern. Suryakumar brought up a 35-ball fifty but fell soon after to Lungi Ngidi, who mixed his pace effectively. T Natarajan then had Dhir mistiming one to the deep. MI crossed 160 largely due to a late push from Bosch, but it remained a controlled, disciplined bowling effort from DC throughout.

That happened

A canny Rohit cost the Capitals a review in the ninth over. Attempting to play the sweep, there was a deflection and both Kuldeep and 'keeper KL Rahul were convinced that there was some bat involved. Cheekily, Rohit walked a few paces, adding a false sense of confidence for DC. As it turned out, it came off the pads and DC lost a review. "I was just trying to walk there. I know Kuldeep, he likes to take the DRS as soon as there's a 50-50 chance. I was just trying my luck there and it turned out in our favour," revealed Rohit in a chat with the broadcaster during the mid-innings break.

What's next for the teams?

The Capitals stay back in Delhi for their second home game, against Gujarat Titans on April 8. Mumbai Indians travel to Guwahati to take on Rajasthan Royals on April 7.