Rajasthan Royals (RR) suffered their third straight defeat in the IPL 2026 after failing to protect 193 runs against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Sunday. With the chase still very much alive—DC requiring 35 runs from the final three overs—RR captain Riyan Parag turned to Donovan Ferreira to deliver the decisive 18th over. Ferreira conceded 16 runs in that spell, including a couple of sixes, and the hosts’ task became significantly easier from there as the match swung decisively in Delhi’s direction. Sunil Gavaskar, the former India captain and IPL legend, went as far as to describe the move as “suicidal” during coverage on Star Sports’ Amul Cricket Live.
Gavaskar’s criticism centred on the timing and the choice of bowler. He argued that handing the 18th over to a slow option on a pitch offering little assistance was an avoidable error, especially since it was Ferreira’s first over of the match. Gavaskar also pointed out that Ferreira had struggled with the bat earlier in the game, scoring a golden duck, and suggested that the captain should have looked at where the match situation offered the best odds rather than relying on that particular matchup.
“Handing the ball to Donovan Ferreira to bowl the 18th over was a suicidal move. You are bringing a slow bowler on a pitch offering him no help. He was just bowling in the slot. It was his first over of the match. He had also scored a golden duck with the bat. Sometimes you must look at where the luck is going that day,” Gavaskar said. He added that the logic might have been different had Ferreira been in rhythm with the bat, but with the batter already out early, the decision only made the chase more difficult for RR. “If he had scored 40 or 50 runs and was high on confidence, giving him an over would have made sense. But he got out first ball, and you still gave him the ball. He went for 16 runs in that over, and the match was gone. Done and dusted. Riyan Parag could have handed the ball to a proper bowler, a regular bowler. Even if that bowler gave away 20 runs, that’s not the point. The point is that at that crucial stage, giving the ball to Donovan Ferreira was a suicidal decision by Rajasthan Royals.”
Delhi’s chase was shaped further by tight margins in the death overs. Brijesh Sharma conceded 12 runs in the penultimate over, setting up Adam Milne to defend seven runs in the final six balls. Ashutosh Sharma then finished the job quickly, striking through the opening two deliveries to keep his side’s season firmly in the playoff mix.
Before Delhi’s successful reply, RR had posted 193/8, with wickets shared among Mitchell Starc, Madhav Tiwari and Lungi Ngidi. Despite the pressure of a chase that demanded acceleration later, Rajasthan managed to find enough momentum through fifties from Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi provided a particularly important burst. Jurel struck 53 off 40 balls, Parag made 51 off 26, and Sooryavanshi’s 46 came from just 21 deliveries, helping RR reach a defendable total.
Starc was the standout with the ball, taking four wickets across the innings. The most damaging moment arrived in the 15th over, where he produced an over hat-trick: he removed the well-set Riyan Parag with the second ball, sent Donovan Ferreira back with the very next delivery, and then dismissed debutant Ravi Singh with the fifth ball of the over. Gavaskar, reflecting on that three-wicket burst, emphasised that the timing of wickets matters as much as the count.
“It’s not just about how many wickets you take. It’s about when you take them. Wickets at key moments change the game. In the Powerplay, early wickets push the opposition on the back foot and stop them from getting a flying start. But if you fail to control the run-flow at the death, all that early effort goes to waste,” Gavaskar explained. He then added that while Starc might not have dominated in the opening phase, his control in the closing stages proved decisive. “Starc didn’t have a great powerplay. But when he came back at the death, he bowled with great control. He didn’t let the Rajasthan batters free their arms. He choked the runs and picked up crucial wickets. Those wickets turned the match in Delhi’s favour. Rajasthan looked set to cross 200 easily, but Starc had other plans. They paid the price for underestimating him. His three-wicket over pushed Rajasthan all the way back,” he concluded.
With the result, DC climbed to seventh place in the points table, registering six victories and seven defeats for 12 points. RR sit fifth, also on 12 points, but from six wins and six losses.
