IPL 2021: Aakash Chopra says Delhi Capitals openers are 'absolute rockstars'

Aakash Chopra has said Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan deserve immense credit for their dismantling of the Chennai Super Kings attack during the IPL 2021 encounter on Saturday.

The Delhi Capitals openers strung together a rollicking 138-run partnership in less than fourteen overs to almost make a mockery of the 189-run target.

While singing praises for the duo in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra pointed out Shikhar Dhawan brought his carefree approach to the fore and continued his good run against the MS Dhoni-led outfit.

"The Delhi Capitals opening combination is forcing us to salute them. They are absolute rockstars. Shikhar was absolutely fearless. He likes playing against Chennai, averages more than 50 against this team. He scored a century last time and here also came close to a century," said Chopra.

The cricketer-turned-commentator was particularly appreciative of some of the outrageous shots played by Dhawan against the CSK pacers.

"Some of his shots were almost rude. He was sweeping the fast bowlers from wide outside the off-stump, who does that to Dwayne Bravo, Chahar and Thakur. He is batting extremely well," added Aakash Chopra.

Shikhar Dhawan top-scored for the Delhi Capitals, with his 85-run knock coming off just 54 deliveries. He was duly awarded the Player of the Match for his enterprising effort.

💙 𝐀 𝐆𝐚𝐛𝐛𝐚𝐫 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐰𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 💙Couldn't have asked for a better start from our DC boys, could we? 🔥#YehHaiNayiDilli #IPL2021 #CSKvDC pic.twitter.com/6IrYZIRVPo

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) April 10, 2021

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Aakash Chopra's views on Prithvi Shaw's knock

Aakash Chopra observed Prithvi Shaw's knock was the fruition of his hard toil [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra highlighted Prithvi Shaw utilized the advantage of playing on his familiar home ground to the fullest.

"Prithvi came, Prithvi Shaw and Prithvi conquered. All of us were saying that there is no home advantage, no one is playing at home but Prithvi said this is his home, he is aware of every nook and corner of the Wankhede Stadium, knows the pitch, the pace and the bounce," said Chopra.

The 43-year-old lauded the diminutive opener for putting in the hard yards to rectify his deficiencies after enduring a torrid time in IPL 2020 and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

"We got to see the result of the hard work he has put in. He did not have a good IPL, was dropped after the first match in Australia as well. When I spoke to him, he told that he worked very hard for one week after coming from Australia, spoke to Sachin Tendulkar and practised for long periods with Pravin Amre and corrected his technical flaws," added Aakash Chopra.

Aakash Chopra signed off by stating that Shaw continued the momentum he gained with his record-breaking exploits in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

"After that, the way he started scoring runs and translated the form and confidence he had in domestic cricket to here. And that happens, even if you score runs in your backyard, you get the confidence. Prithvi batted beautifully, absolutely stunning display of stroke-making and he has a lot of weapons in his armoury and he displayed them well," concluded Chopra.

Prithvi Shaw took the Chennai Super Kings attack to the cleaners during his blazing 72-run knock. He scored those runs off just 38 deliveries and smashed nine fours and three sixes in the process.

He came, he put on a show, he left 💙Prithvi is out for 72 off just 38 balls. What an innings 🙌#YehHaiNayiDilli #IPL2021 #CSKvDC pic.twitter.com/xQat45LA1b

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) April 10, 2021