Hazlewood (4/12), Bhuvneshwar (3/5) dazzle in nine-wicket victory
New Delhi: Royal Challengers Bengaluru produced a devastating new-ball display to thrash Delhi Capitals by nine wickets in their IPL clash on Monday, with the contest effectively sealed inside the first three overs.
Seamers Josh Hazlewood (4/12) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3/5) dismantled the Capitals’ batting, reducing them to 13 for six in the Powerplay. Delhi eventually folded for 75 in 16.3 overs, narrowly avoiding their lowest IPL total.
Abhishek Porel top-scored with 30, while David Miller (19) and Kyle Jamieson (12) were the only others to reach double figures.
The collapse began with Bhuvneshwar’s second-ball yorker to dismiss debutant Sahil Parakh. Hazlewood then struck twice in successive deliveries to remove KL Rahul and Sameer Rizvi, triggering panic in the Delhi ranks. Bhuvneshwar returned to dismiss Tristan Stubbs and skipper Axar Patel as the hosts slumped to 9 for six.
In reply, RCB chased down the modest target in just 6.3 overs. Virat Kohli (23) and Jacob Bethell (20) provided a brisk start before Devdutt Padikkal’s fluent 34 ensured a comfortable finish.
