IPL 2021: Morris, Miller help Royals edge Delhi Capitals

Mumbai: David Miller's combative 43-ball 62 and Chris Morris' timely onslaught (36 not out) powered Rajasthan Royals to a dramatic three-wicket win over Delhi Capitals in their IPL match, here on Thursday.

IPL 2021 POINTS TABLE

Pos	Team		Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	NRR
1		DC	8	6	2	0	0	12	+0.547
2		CSK	7	5	2	0	0	10	+1.263
3		RCB	7	5	2	0	0	10	-0.171
4		MI	7	4	3	0	0	8	+0.062
5		RR	7	3	4	0	0	6	-0.19
6		PBKS	8	3	5	0	0	6	-0.368
7		KKR	7	2	5	0	0	4	-0.494
8		SRH	7	1	6	0	0	2	-0.623

Opting to bowl, Royals pacer Jaydev Unadkat took three wickets for 15 runs to restrict Capitals to 147/8.

Miller then anchored the Royals' chase, but it was Morris who took Royals home with two balls to spare. It was Royals' first win of the season.

Royals were 17/3 in the fourth over and 52/5 at the halfway mark. They needed 58 from the last five overs and 12 from the final over.

Morris ended the run chase with a six off Tom Curran.

Royals' run chase was, however, in tatters as soon as it started.

Chris Woakes removed openers Manan Vohra (9) and Jos Buttler (1) in the space of three balls in the third over.

Delhi Capitals players celebrate the fall of a wicket. Photo: Twitter/IPL

In the next over, Kagiso Rabada dismissed the dangerous Royals captain Sanju Samson -- the only centurion so far this season -- with Shikhar Dhawan taking the catch at the slip.

Shivam Dube (2) perished while playing an unnecessary uppish shot at a length ball off Avesh Khan with Dhawan taking his 78th catch of the IPL.

The same pair worked in tandem two overs later with Dhawan taking his third catch of the day after Riyan Parag (2) had miscued an Avesh Khan delivery.

Miller and Rahul Tewatia (19) kept the Royals in the hunt with a 48-run stand for the sixth wicket before Rabada came back to give the much-needed breakthrough for Capitals.

Earlier, a brilliant three-wicket burst from pacer Jaydev Unadkat helped Royals restrict Capitals.

Unadkat (3/15 off 4 overs) dismissed Prithvi Shaw, Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane to trigger a top-order collapse from which Capitals never recovered fully.

Captain Rishabh Pant's blistering 32-ball 51, studded with nine fours, was not enough as they could only post a modest total after being put in to bat.

Capitals were 36/3 at the end of powerplay and the slump continued as Marcus Stonis (0), foxed by a Mustafizur Rahman (2/29) delivery, checked his shot at the last minute to offer a running catch to Buttler.

The run rate started increasing once captain Pant came to the crease.

Once he had a full measure of the pitch, Pant opened up and hit four boundaries, three of which were consecutive, to take 20 runs from the 11th over bowled by Tewatia.

Rishabh Pant continued his rich vein of form. Photo: Twitter/IPL

Pant, in excellent form this year, reached to his fifty off 30 balls in the 12th over, with a four off Mustafizur but he was run out the next over with bowler Riyan Parag's throw crashing onto the stumps.

Delhi were 88/5 then.

After Pant's exit, Curran gave some respectability to the Capitals innings with a 16-ball 21.

The comments posted here/below/in the given space are not on behalf of Onmanorama. The person posting the comment will be in sole ownership of its responsibility. According to the central government's IT rules, obscene or offensive statement made against a person, religion, community or nation is a punishable offense, and legal action would be taken against people who indulge in such activities.