IPL 2019: 3 factors that helped Delhi Capitals defeat RCB

On 28 April, the Delhi Capitals defeated the Royal Challengers Bangalore by 16 runs and sealed a place in the IPL 2019 playoffs. They became the second team after Chennai Super Kings to confirm a top 4 spot.

Batting first, Delhi got off to a quick start as they scored 30 from the first 3 overs. But Prithvi Shaw was caught by Parthiv Patel off Umesh Yadav, which brought the skipper Shreyas Iyer to the crease.

Shikhar Dhawan and Iyer stitched together a solid partnership which helped DC cross 100 in the 12th over. Even though they lost wickets in the middle overs, last-minute cameos from Axar Patel and Sherfane Rutherford helped them post a commendable 187 on the board.

Chasing 188, RCB had an even better start than the hosts. They were cruising at 63/0 in the 6th over, when Kagiso Rabada drew first blood by scalping Parthiv Patel.

The next few overs saw the RCB batsmen marching to the pavilion without troubling the scorecard much. The only ray of hope came when Gurkeerat Singh and Marcus Stoinis started scoring some boundaries post the 15-over mark.

But an excellent spell of death bowling from DC made sure that the Royal Challengers ended on the losing side. RCB are now, for all practical purposes, out of contention for the playoffs. They sit at the bottom of the points table and now can't win more than six matches in the league stage.

Here, we take a look at the three major factors which contributed to the Delhi Capitals' success:

1. The solid partnership between Shikhar Dhawan and Shreyas Iyer

When DC lost the wicket of Shaw early in the innings, a mature partnership of 68 from 53 balls between Dhawan and Iyer laid the much needed platform for the Delhi Capitals.

Dhawan scored 50 runs from 37 deliveries (with 5 fours and 2 sixes) and Iyer slammed 52 from 37 (with 2 fours and 3 sixes).

2. The late flourish from Axar Patel and Sherfane Rutherford

At the end of the 17th over, DC were at a so-so 141/5. But an unbroken partnership of 46 from 19 balls between Axar Patel and Sherfane Rutherford turned out to be the game-changer, as it took DC from an average total to an imposing one.

Both these players were severe on the RCB bowlers Umesh Yadav and Navdeep Saini as they scored 36 runs off the last two overs. Patel scored 16 off 9 balls and Rutherford smashed 28 off just 13 deliveries.

3. Sensational last three overs from Rabada and Ishant

At the 17-over mark in the run chase, RCB were at 152/5, which made them look like favorites to win the game. But while the RCB bowlers were taken to the cleaners in the final 3 overs, the DC bowlers bowled extremely well in those 18 balls, which ended up being the deciding factor in the game.

Rabada gave away just 6 runs and 9 runs in the 18th and 20th overs respectively, while Ishant gave away just 4 runs off the 19th over.