“A player like Prithvi does not just fall out of a tree” - Shane Watson defends struggling DC opener 

Delhi Capitals (DC) assistant coach Shane Watson backed young opener Prithvi Shaw after the batter registered another failure in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Saturday, April 15. Defending Shaw, Watson commented that players like him do not just fall out of a tree.

Coming in as the Impact Player after DC were set 175 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Shaw was run-out for a duck in the first over by a direct hit from Anuj Rawat as he attempted a tight single. The 23-year-old has registered a highest score of 15 from five innings in IPL 2023 and has been out without scoring twice.

Asked about the batter’s poor run in the tournament, Watson commented at a post-match press conference:

“Prithvi came off after sitting for 20 overs until the impact player rules came in. Otherwise he would be out there running around ready to take off and run that a little bit faster. Prithvi is as skilled as any other better in India. And everyone has seen that from the time he made his Test debut. The biggest thing for him is just to be able to allow himself to access the skills with no fear of making a mistake or getting out.

“He can take down the best bowlers in the world and in all conditions. A player like Prithvi does not just fall out of a tree.”

Shaw has played 68 IPL matches so far, scoring 1622 runs at an average of 23.85 and a strike rate of 146.65, with a best of 99.

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“We just are not executing well enough with the bat” - Watson

Not just Shaw, but almost the entire DC batting line-up failed against RCB as the franchise succumbed to their fifth straight loss. Chasing 175, Delhi were held to 151/9, with only Manish Pandey (50 off 38) offering some resistance.

Watson rued DC batters’ inability to execute the team’s plans. He conceded:

“Unfortunately, we were not able to put together a good batting innings. Our biggest issue at this point in time is losing wickets in the first six overs and then consistently losing wickets. We were not able to put a partnership together and get some momentum especially on a ground like Chinnaswamy, if you can set a platform here you can score a lot of runs in the last 10 overs.

“We just are not executing well enough with the bat to be able to get through with the best bowlers with a brand-new ball. We are working with individuals … and right now just the way they are executing is not going as per the plan. They are not getting through the first 10-15 balls to be able to set a platform for their own innings.”

Delhi Capitals find themselves at the bottom of the IPL 2023 points table with zero points and a poor net run rate of -1.488.