Eliminated Delhi Capitals stun playoff-bound Punjab Kings with a fine run-chase in Jaipur to keep IPL 2025’s top-two race open
For a third straight game, an eliminated team thrashed an already qualified team in the Indian Premier League to spice up the race for the top-two in an otherwise humdrum business end of the tournament. ended their 2025 campaign on a high, handing a 6-wicket loss at Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium in what was a repeat clash of the abandoned match in Dharamsala.
On a day when cricket finally gave a long-awaited chance — earning an India Test call-up after nearly eight years — it didn’t take much time for the domestic stalwart to return the favours. In a challenging 207-run chase, the battle-hardened Nair delivered his A-game after openers Faf du Plessis and laid a strong foundation for Delhi.
The chase threatened to unravel with the openers falling, but the dismissal of Afghan debutant Sediqullah Atal by Praveen Dubey somehow fueled Nair even more as he hammered the leggies for four consecutive fours.
Cheeky 🤝 Classy
Sameer Rizvi and Karun Nair with pressure releasing maximums in the chase 💥💥
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Nair’s valiant effort was ultimately overshadowed by a clutch innings by Sameer Rizvi as he smashed a blistering 58 off just 25. With 52 needing off the last five, put an instant choke, conceding just four off the 16th over. Rizvi then broke free and hit a clean strike over long-on before Tristan Stubbs ended Harpreet Brar’s effective spell with a four. Rizvi slapped Azmatullah Omarzai for a couple of boundaries, making a realistic target for of 22 off 12 from 34 off 18. The result became academic when the UP League star swivel-pulled Arshdeep for six, followed by Stubbs’ scoop for four in the penultimate over.
There’s an undeniable swagger in — in his antics, his posture, the ever-present smirk, and his trademark gum-chewing. His batting usually reflects that omnipresent conviction, but on a night when Punjab openers lost the track early for the second consecutive game, it was skipper Iyer’s composure and not the exuberance that steadied the ship. Australian powerhouse then arrived late to fulfil the team’s swag quota in his explosive fashion.
While wickets tumbled at regular intervals from the other end, Iyer kept the scoreboard moving, stitching together four partnerships of 20-plus runs. Iyer demoted himself to No. 5, sending Josh Inglis ahead after the early dismissal of Priyansh Arya. The move was worthwhile till it lasted, as Inglis kept the tempo high, blitzing to a 12-ball 32. Iyer, who got off the mark with a four, slapping it past short cover off Vipraj Nigam, hit his fifth half-century of the season.
Power-packed knocks that powered to a strong total 👏
🔽 Watch Shreyas Iyer and Marcus Stoinis’ impactful knocks |
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For Delhi, Mustafizur Rahman impressed with his cutters and variations. DC seized the middle overs, denying Punjab any boundaries for 18 balls with Nehal Wadhera and Shashank back in the hut. The momentum shifted DC’s way before Stoinis’s muscle show was on. Coming in to bat in the 16th over, he struck three fours and four sixes to get 44 off 16, taking Punjab over the 200 mark for the seventh time this season while batting first. But it wasn’t to be enough in the end as they face an anxious wait for top-two.
Brief scores: Punjab Kings 206/8 (Shreyas Iyer 53, Mustafizur Rahman 3/33) lost to Delhi Capitals 208/4 in 19.3 overs (Sameer Rizvi 58, Harpreet Brar 2/41) by 6 wickets
