IPL 2020: 3 Mistakes committed by KXIP against DC

A nail-biting finish, a hero that turned into a villain and a Super Over. The second match of IPL 2020 saw everything in such a short duration. Delhi Capitals’ (DC) skipper Shreyas Iyer will sleep like a baby but we have to feel bad for Kings XI Punjab (KXIP). They went so close but yet remained so far.

Dubai International Stadium witnessed as close a cricket game as it can get. DC defeated KXIP in the Super Over and won their first game of the campaign. Marcus Stoinis contributed with both bat and ball and won the Man of the Match award for his heroic effort. The game was so tight and KXIP could actually win it quite comfortably but like they say, ‘Cricket is a funny game’.

Here are 3 mistakes KXIP committed, which led them to lose the game against Delhi Capitals:

1. Death bowling issue

KXIP started the game on a near-perfect note as they dismissed DC’s top order quite comfortably. Delhi was struggling at 96 for 6 in 16.1 overs but the next 23 balls just changed the whole scenario. The extraordinary effort from Stoinis led DC to score 61 in the next 23 balls.

Also the last over from Chris Jordan went for 30 runs, which is the joint highest in IPL history. If Punjab would have chased 20 runs less than they did, things would have turned out differently.

2. Last over chaos

While chasing, KXIP started off in an unexpected way and lost its way quite early. However, Mayank Agarwal the protagonist of KXIP batting took them as near as they could get. With just 1 run needed of the last 3 balls, KXIP almost had the game in their hand, but Stoinis had other plans.

Instead of scoring a single run, Agarwal took the aerial root to slam the glory shot and got caught at the boundary. They lost two wickets and failed to score that last run which took the game to a Super Over.

3. Not sending Mayank Agarwal in the Super Over

The batsman who is there till the end and is looking in excellent touch is the conventional choice for the Super Over. But KXIP went in with their power hitters. Mayank Agarwal scored more than 50% of KXIP’s score and was looking quite comfortable during his innings.

He even slammed two massive sixes off Kagiso Rabada, the Super Over bowler of Delhi Capitals, during his knock but KXIP sent their big hitters in the middle. Rabada struck twice and Punjab was bundled up for 2 runs, which allowed DC to win the Super Over quite comfortably.