Fiery spells from Natarajan, Sunder help SRH restrict DC to 144/9

HYDERABAD: Fiery spells from T Natarajan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar helped Sunrisers Hyderabad restrict Delhi Capitals to 144/9 in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Monday.

For SRH, Natarajan bagged three while Bhuvneshwar claimed two wickets. For DC, Manish Pandey and Axar Patel scored 34 runs each.

Put to field first, experienced pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar drew first blood as he dismissed Philip Salt for a duck in the first over. The right-handed batter Mitchell Marsh then came out to bat and slammed Mitchell Marsh for 19 runs with the help of four boundaries.

T Natarajan then struck in the 5th over to remove dangerous-looking Marsh for 25. Washington Sundar wreaked havoc on Delhi as he sent DC's three batters packing in the eighth over of the game.

Sundar first removed DC captain Warner for 21 and then sent Sarfaraz Khan packing after he had scored 10 runs. Aman Hakim Khan was Sundar's third prey as the SRH bowler removed the batter with a stunning delivery. Sunder picked up three wickets in five balls.

The left-handed batter Axar Patel then came out to bat. At this point, DC were tottering at 62/5. Manish Pandey and Axar Patel kept the scoreboard ticking for DC. The duo took their team's total beyond the 100-run mark in the 15th over of the innings.

The hard-hitting duo also bought up their 50-run partnership stand in the 16th over. Axar slammed Mayank Markande for 15 runs with the help of three boundaries. Bhuvneshwar provided his team with another breakthrough as he removed the well-set batter Axar for 34. Manish Pandey then lost his wicket as he was run out after scoring 34. In the last over, Delhi lost their two wickets to run outs and were only able to post a total of 144/9 in 20 overs.

Brief score: Delhi Capitals 144/9 (Axar Patel 34, Manish Pandey 34; Washington Sundar 3-28) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad.