Rahul, Nissanka fifties lead 226 chase as DC return to winning ways
Parag was back in form with 90 while Ferreira fired 47*, but the pitch didn't offer much to RR's bowlers
Parag was back in form with 90 while Ferreira fired 47*, but the pitch didn't offer much to RR's bowlers
Scorer: K Vairavan | Commentator: Abhijato (@ob_jato)
11.45pm We're all wrapped up here. Great chase from DC that lays the base for a late-season resurgence for them. RR, on the other hand, might have some introspection to do. From Vairavan, Ranjith, Ekanth, and I - goodbye and good night! Catch you tomorrow as we head into another blockbuster line-up of weekend games.
Now the post-match presentation.
And finally, Player of the Match, KL Rahul. He puts on the orange Cap too. "We play the sport to win. After playing for so many years, wins do matter. You score runs and break records, but you don't get the points... The dressing room's always been a decent place. We try to keep that dressing room as balanced as possible. Results haven't gone our way. We have to dig deep and see if we've made some mistakes, big blunders. Hasn't been the case. We haven't been able to cash in on the big moments... Important that we take our chances when we are ahead in the game. [Batting with Nissanka] Remind each other to play proper cricket shots. Strike rate was a big talking point for a few years. Happy I've worked on that, and doing that modern T20 cricket requires."
Axar Patel picks up the mic for a chat, all smiles. "You know, you have to come every day and do your best. Very happy the way boys played. The way they batted, bowled - both departments - I'm very happy. We executed our plans, and got the results we wanted. If the team in front of you can change the game in the powerplay, when we got all those wickets I was very happy. The way Starc bowled, I want to say that's why he's a legend - after three months, he's playing and putting in a performance like this. [On last-ball catch] Everything is fine now, physios iced my hands. I also want to say: the tragedy that happened with our fans after the last match, I want to dedicate this win to them."
Mitchell Starc now: "Nice to get the cobwebs out. Good to get some running in the legs, get some training in. Nice return... I mean I've been bowling for a period of weeks. Haven't bowled at a batter until three nights ago. In terms of ticking the boxes with the skills, I was in a position to do most of what I want to do."
The RR captain, Riyan Parag: "Thought it was a good score. 200 around par. Could have bowled way better in the middle overs. [On holding back finishers] It was lefty-righty as well. I don't know, actually. Eight-nine overs to go, we wanted to delay it. Eight-nine an over off the spinners. Nothing much to think about that. [On his injury] Hopefully not too serious, on the hamstring. Week's break, will clear it out. [On knock] I don't need to answer any critics. At the end of the day, we lost the game..." Teared up a little, in the end there
11.25pm DC move to sixth on the points table, after three back-to-back losses. KL Rahul and Nissanka were architects of this chase from the top of the order. Their fifties pumped them up in the powerplay. Ashutosh and Stubbs did enough to ensure they never felt too big a pinch in the back-end of the chase. Their campaign stays alive and RR will have some thinking to do about their strategy: about Jurel's pace of batting, Jadeja's entry-point today, and their lack of an incisive spinner right now. But all that for later. First, we hear from the players. By the way: 11th successful chase of 200-plus in this season of the tournament.
Vismay: "200 are being chased like a walk in the park"
Meanwhile, Kyle Jamieson said a 'bit of planning' with Starc had gone into how to keep Jaiswal and Sooryavanshi quiet
Rahul, the current Orange Cap holder, scored 75 off 40 balls as DC overcame a stiff chase
It's a tricky role and Jurel has the attributes to be able to play it but his strike rates feel worryingly behind the times
This is what things look like on the Orange and Purple Cap tables after another high-scoring game in IPL 2026
RR captain added that they wanted to have a left-right combination as well