Rishabh Pant won the battle of wicketkeeper-captains against MS Dhoni as Delhi Capitals (DC) kick-started their VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 campaign with a seven-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Chasing a challenging target of 189, DC looked in no trouble whatsoever, with openers Prithvi Shaw (72) and Shikhar Dhawan (85) making a mockery of the CSK bowlers. The duo added 138 runs for the first wicket and the contest was all but over by the time CSK drew the first blood. Skipper Pant and Marcus Stoinis did the formalities as DC comfortably won the game with 11 balls to spare. IPL 2021 Points Table Updated.

Earlier in the game, DC captain Rishabh Pant elected to bowl after winning the toss in his first assignment as captain in IPL. CSK got off to a terrible start with their openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis falling cheaply. Nevertheless, Suresh Raina, after missing out last season, made a thumping comeback in the yellow jersey and scored a brilliant fifty. Moeen Ali, Sam Curran and Ravindra Jadeja also played handy cameos as the three-time champions posted 188/6 in their allotted 20 overs which didn’t prove enough. Meanwhile, let’s look at the stat highlights of the game. CSK vs DC Highlights of VIVO IPL 2021.

CSK vs DC Stat Highlights:

# 189 is the third-highest successful run-chase against Chennai Super Kings.

# Chris Woakes and Tom Curran made their IPL debut for Delhi Capitals.

# Moeen Ali made his debut for Chennai Super Kings.

# Suresh Raina registered his 38th fifty in IPL.

# Shikhar Dhawan smashed his 42nd half-century in IPL.

# Prithvi Shaw scored his sixth fifty in IPL.

# Dhawan and Shaw’s stand of 138 runs is the second-highest opening partnership against CSK in IPL.

# R Ashwin conceded 47 runs in this game, his third most expensive spell in IPL.

With this triumph, DC go at the top of the team standings and would like to continue their winning run. They’ll next face Sanju Samson’s Rajasthan Royals at the same venue on April 15. On the other hand, the ghosts of last season would be haunting MS Dhoni’s men with this loss and they need to get back to winning ways soon. Their next assignment is against KL Rahul’s Punjab Kings on April 16.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 10, 2021 11:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).