Delhi Capitals assistant coach Pravin Amre explained the reason why the team used Lalit Yadav in the powerplay against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday (April 20) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
After Khaleel Ahmed conceded 19 runs in the first over, Rishabh Pant handed the ball to Lalit Yadav, who was playing only his second match in IPL 2024. The decision raised several eyebrows as not many expected Lalit Yadav to put the ball in. the powerplay and bowling against openers in the form of SRH, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma.
The decision completely backfired as Head hit him for two sixes and a four before Sharma also hit him for a four. Lalit Yadav ended up conceding 21 runs in his first over. Rishabh Pant gave Lalit Yadav the ball to bowl another over in the powerplay and the spinner ended up giving away 20 runs in the fourth over as SRH raced to 83 without loss in just four overs.
In the fourth over, Sharma hit Lalit Yadav for two sixes, while Head hit him for one six. Lalit Yadav did not bowl another over in the game as he finished the innings wicketless for 41 runs in just two overs.
Pravin Amre on Lalit Yadav’s bowling in the powerplay:
Rishabh Pant’s decision to give two overs to Lalit Yadav in the powerplay against SRH’s high-flying openers has received criticism from various quarters. Many have suggested that the DC captain made a mistake by not giving the ball to any experienced player.
Pravin Amre spoke at the end of the match and explained the reason for his decision. The DC coach claimed that the team management had planned to use Lalit Yadav in the powerplay due to his knowledge of the local conditions.
The former India batsman pointed out that even other teams’ pacers struggled against Head and Sharma, so DC wanted to try off-spin against the two left-handed batsmen. At the same time, he also gave credit to the batsmen for the way they batted.
“SRH’s strength was the openers. The other teams couldn’t control it either. We thought Lalit Yadav is a local, Delhi boy, so we took a chance. We have to give credit to Abhishek, the way he handled the match. spinners,” Amre told the media.
Record-breaking power play:
SRH scored a staggering 125 runs without loss in the powerplay to break the record for most runs in the powerplay. The record was previously held by Kolkata Knight Riders by scoring 105 runs against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2017.
SRH finished their innings on 266/7 and won the game by 67 runs after bowling out DC for 199. The win was their fifth of the season and took them to second place in the points table.