Pant boosts T20 World Cup hopes
Delhi skipper smashes unbeaten 88 to lead his side to win against Gujarat by four runs
Rishabh Pant smashed an unbeaten 88 as he led Delhi Capitals to a tense IPL 4-wicket win over Gujarat Titans yesterday, boosting his chances of playing for India at the T20 World Cup.
Delhi posted 224-4 courtesy of a 113-run stand between Pant and fellow left-hander Axar Patel, who hit 66, after they slipped to 44-3 inside six overs at Arun Jaitley Stadium.
The hosts kept Gujarat down to 220-8 to win by four runs after David Miller’s 23ball 55 and an unbeaten 21 off 11 deliveries by Rashid Khan.
Mukesh Kumar kept his nerve in the final over for Delhi’s fourth win in nine matches as they kept their playoff hopes alive in the T20 tournament.
Pant, 26, struck his third half-century of this season after 14 months away from top level cricket following a frightening car accident when his Mercedes rammed into a barrier, flipped and caught fire in December 2022.
Pant suffered multiple injuries and was rushed to hospital before being airlifted to Mumbai for further treatment and surgery. He has not only fired with the bat in the IPL but his sharp work behind the stumps prompted Delhi’s director of cricket Sourav Ganguly and coach Ricky Ponting to back the India star for making the national team for the World Cup in June.
Gujarat’s impact substitute Sai Sudarshan smashed 65 off 39 balls but they lost regular wickets. Rashid kept up the fight as Gujarat needed 19 off the final over and five on the last ball.