Axar Patel had little clarity to offer after Delhi Capitals’ batting collapsed in two separate defeats in as many days, first failing to hold on to a total of 264 against Punjab Kings and then managing only 75 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Saturday. The latest blow came with Delhi in trouble almost immediately, slumping to 9 for 6 during the Powerplay. Bhuveneshwar Kumar provided the early damage with meaningful movement through the air, while Josh Hazlewood executed a short-ball plan with precision, leaving the top order struggling to settle.
With Delhi’s innings running out to the lowest team score of the season, Bengaluru cruised to a nine-wicket victory. At the post-match presentation, Axar admitted he was as baffled as anyone, saying, “Even I don’t know what happened. That’s why they say you have to be on your toes in cricket. We have to move on from this match.”
Axar also pointed to small, decisive moments that could have shifted the momentum earlier in the tournament. He referenced the earlier one-run loss to Gujarat Titans, where David Miller refused a single, and noted that Karun Nair’s missed chances against Punjab Kings only made Delhi’s situation tougher. “From today’s point of view, you can say it did effect, but you can look back, if the catches were taken (Nair) or had we taken the single against GT, then momentum would have been with us. The game is such that there is no room for ifs and buts. You have to be positive, you had a bad day and take the positives from the last 5-6 games,” Axar added.
Despite the evident early swing that had unsettled batters, the Delhi captain pushed back on the idea that the conditions were unusually difficult. He felt that the main difference was execution rather than exaggerated movement. After Bhuveneshwar’s banana inswing had cleaned up Sahil Parakh, Axar’s skipper remained unconvinced that the pitch or conditions had carried anything extraordinary, arguing that if the openers and top order had played through the threat, the result might have turned.
Hazlewood, meanwhile, credited the bowler’s approach as much as the conditions. Speaking after dismissing KL Rahul and Nitish Rana with short balls, he said he was not fully sure what kind of track would present itself after a previous match that produced close to 530 runs. “Probably turning up here after 500-plus runs in the last game, was not sure what was going to happen,” Hazlewood said, adding that he relied on guidance from pace partner Bhuveneshwar Kumar.
Hazlewood explained that the plan was built around making the ball work early and then maintaining pressure. “Was just following his (Bhuvneshwar) lead. There was a bit there in the first six overs – enough there to work with, and it was skidding on quickly from a short of a length. Once the ball got soft, it got more even,” he said.
He also detailed how the short-ball strategy was used to disrupt Rana in particular. “In general, you wanted the batter to hit it down the wicket and in the V. The short ball was nice as well, just about the accuracy. When that ball was nice and hard, it was tough to bat. Would have been nice to bowl four and get off the field,” Hazlewood added.
Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar echoed the surprise at how quickly the match swung in their favour. “Even I am surprised the way wicket played,” he said. Patidar then praised the execution from his pace attack, stating, “All credit goes to the bowlers, Bhuvi and Hazlewood. They hit the right areas. The swing was normal but the good thing was we got early wickets and that kept us in the driving seat. The way Suyash bowled, stump to stump, it was really good to see,” he concluded.
