Ashok Kumar
- Apr 30, 2023
- 6 min read

IPL 2023, DC vs SRH: Abhishek, Klaasen power SRH to settle score against DC

IPL 2023, Delhi Capitals (DC) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH): Abhishek Sharma's 67 & 1-26, Mitchell Marsh's 4-27 & 63 and Heinrich Klaasen's 53 are top performances. SRH beat Delhi and move to 8th place in points table.

IPL 2023, DC vs SRH, Top Performances: Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Delhi Capitals and move to 8th place in table | Walking wicket (Images: ©IPL/Twitter)

Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Delhi Capitals (Images: ©IPL/Twitter)

Brief Scores: SRH 197/6 (Abhishek Sharma 67, Heinrich Klaasen 53 not out, Mitchell Marsh 4/27) beat DC 188/6 (Mitchell Marsh 63, Phil Salt 59, Mayank Markande 2/20) by 9 runs.

Player of the match: Mitchell Marsh (4/27 & 63)

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) survived a century stand between Mitchell Marsh and Phil Salt to post a 9-run win over Delhi Capitals (DC) in IPL 2023 at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Saturday. Asked to chase 198, Delhi Capitals could manage 188/6 to lose a two-match winning streak. The win helped SRH take revenge for the loss they suffered against Delhi in their home game previously.

Hyderabad clinches a stunning victory over Delhi In An Exhilarating Match

Abhishek Sharma appeared to be in a league as he stood out from his Sunrisers Hyderabad teammates. While the others struggled to maintain their wickets, Abhishek continued to display impressive stroke play, reaching a score in the 60s. For a long time, Rahul Tripathi was the only other player to make it to double digits besides him, but he was dismissed after just 10 runs. Eventually, Heinrich Klaasen joined Abhishek in the scoring club, and with the help of Abdul Samad and Akeal Hosein, SRH ended on a strong note. The team's total score was 197/6, with Klaasen remaining unbeaten on 53 off 27, Hosein on 16 off 10, and Samad scoring 28 off 21.

Delhi Capitals commenced their chase of the colossal 198-run target as their openers strode out to the crease. Nonetheless, the team's skipper David Warner couldn't get off the mark and was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the very first over. Thereupon, Phil Salt (59) and Mitchell Marsh (63) showcased resolute batting and forged a valuable partnership. However, after Salt and Marsh got out in the 12th and 14th over by Mayank Markande and Akeal Hosein, the batting order started to crumble. By the end of 20 overs, DC could only muster 188 runs for the loss of 6 wickets, thus losing by 9 runs.

Talking point from DC vs SRH

Although Delhi had a great chance to chase down 198, thanks to a 112-run stand between Marsh and Salt, they lost their way once the foreign stars departed as it exposed their inconsistent batting attack. Eventually, DC lost the match by 9 runs to show their batting has been a cause for worry with the local Indian players yet to fire in unison. Plus, their strategy of holding back in-form batsman Axar Patel till death overs defied logic as he had too much to do in the end. Not sending Axar ahead of Manish Pandey and Safaraz Khan, who are struggling for runs, cost Delhi the match.

Abhishek, Klaasen power SRH to 197/6

SRH chose to bat first on winning the toss. They lost the opener, Mayank Agarwal, early for 5 as he edged it behind to keeper Phil Salt off Ishant Sharma’s bowling. The other opener Abhishek Sharma looked in great touch, hitting the ball over the inner circle repeatedly to maximise the powerplay. He put a stand of 39 runs with captain Aiden Markram before the latter holed out in the deep to Axar Patel off the bowling of Mitchell Marsh. Harry Brook didn’t disturb the scorer, pulling straight to Axar at the mid-wicket for a two-ball duck off Marsh’s bowling.

Meanwhile, Abhishek looked extremely comfortable with the pace of the wicket, scoring 67 off 36 balls with 12 fours and 1 six before he holed out to David Warner off Axar Patel. Heinrich Klaasen then carried forward the momentum with his attacking strokeplay, stitching a useful stand of 53 runs in 5.5 overs with Abdul Samad (28). Klaasen continued with his big hitting in the death overs, helping SRH pile 62 runs in the last 5 overs to score 197/6. Klaasen made 27-ball 53 not out with 2 fours and 4 sixes. March took 4/27 for Delhi.

Marsh-Salt give hope, but SRH prevail

Delhi lost their captain David Warner for a second-ball duck after he played down looking to attack Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s bowling. Mitchell Marsh then joined the other opener Phil Salt in the middle, and the two unleashed a range of shots that left the fans in awe. While Marsh was harsh on spinners, pulling and lofting them with ease for huge sixes, Salt got his runs all over the park, playing copybook cuts and drives. The two put a stand of 112 runs in 11 overs before Salt fell to a brilliant caught and bowled by Mayank Markande. Salt made 35-ball 59 with 9 fours.

Manish Pandey was then stumped for 1 off Abhishek Sharma. All rested on Marsh then, but the Aussie star played a few shots too many and holed out to Markram off Akeal Hosein’s bowling for 63 off 39 balls. Delhi’s chase then nosedived as they lost momentum. Also, Axar Patel came too late to make a difference and eventually Delhi was restricted to 188/6 to lose by 9 runs.

Let’s scan the top three performances from the game between DC and SRH in IPL 2023

IPL 2023, DC vs SRH, Top Performances_ Mitchell Marsh's 63 & 4-27 goes in vain as SRH beat DC_ Walking wicket (Images_ ©IPL_Twitter)

Marsh's 63 & 4-27 goes in vain as SRH beat DC (Images: ©IPL/Twitter)

Mitchell Marsh, 4/27 and 63

Finally, the all-rounder in Mitchell Marsh came to the party in this match. He first took 4/27 in a match that was a run-feast, and a pitch that was a nightmare for bowlers. His regular strike with the ball helped Delhi stall the momentum of SRH. He dismissed the dangerous Rahul Tripathi, who was looking to cut loose. He then had a double-wicket over when he had Aiden Markram and Harry Brook pulling straight to fielders. His fourth wicket was the important wicket of Abdul Samad as it broke a 50-run stand and restricted SRH to below 200.

During the chase, March came to bat in just the third ball of the innings and was on the money right from the word go. He and Phil Salt combined to put a stand of 112 runs in 11 overs. Marsh was harsh on the SRH spinners, pulling or lofting them over the straighter boundaries for huge sixes. His score of 63 came in just 39 balls with 6 sixes and 1 four. His performance although came in a losing cause helped him win the match of the match award.

Abhishek Sharma, 67, 1/26

Abhishek Sharma lit up the match with brilliant strokeplay as the SRH opener. He went after the Delhi bowlers in the powerplay to make the most of field restrictions. His lofted shots had class written all over them. He didn’t let the momentum dip post the powerplay overs as he went for his strokes even as his batting partners kept losing wickets. His slog sweep of Kuldeep Yadav for a six over square leg was the best shot from his bat. His knock of 67 came off 36 balls with 12 fours and 1 six. At one point, he had 12 fours out of the team’s combined fours of 13, stating the domination he had over DC bowlers. With the ball, he bowled a tidy spell of 1/26 in 3 overs, taking the wicket of Manish Pandey.

IPL 2023, DC vs SRH, Top Performances_ Heinrich Klaasen's 53 off 27 helps SRH put on 197-run total on board; SRH beat DC _ Walking wicket (Images_ ©IPL_Twitter)

Heinrich Klaasen, 53 not out

The South African keeper was the last recognized specialist batter when he came out to bat at 83/4 in the 10th over. Abhishek was doing a good job at the other end, but once he was dismissed, Klaasen took over to carry forward the momentum laid down by the opener. Klaasen was calm, but aggressive as he tore into the DC bowling attack, racing to 53 off 27 balls with 2 fours and 4 sixes. It was his knock that eventually helped SRH to post a match-winning total of 197/6. Klaasen did the dual role of anchoring and attacking simultaneously and came out triumph as he remained not out on 53, and scored at a strike rate of close to 200.

Points Table Scenario & What's Next

With this win, SRH jumped to 8th, having won 3 games out of 8 matches. DC remained at the 10th spot, having won just 2 out of 8 matches. SRH next face KKR on May 4, while Delhi will be up against Gujarat Titans on May 2.

IPL 2023 Points Table