IPL 2023: Phil Salt Stars With 87 as Delhi Complete Commanding Win Over RCB

IPL 2023: Delhi beat RCB by 7 wickets in match 50 and have now moved out of the bottom spot in the points table.

(Photo: BCCI)

Phil Salt starred with 87 for Delhi Capitals as David Warner's team outplayed Faf du Plessis' RCB on all fronts to collect two vital points and move out of the bottom spot in the IPL 2023 points table.

It was match 50 of the season, being played at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium, and fifties from Virat Kohli (55 off 46) and Mahipal Lomror (54 off 29) helped the visitors post 181/4. In reply, Salt top-scored to help the team win the match by seven wickets, with 20 balls to spare.

Bangalore Batted First, Posted 181/4

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, openers Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli gave RCB a strong start, scoring 51/0 in the powerplay.

Both Faf and Kohli were a bit cautious in their approach in the first four overs and RCB were 23/0. However, after accessing the conditions, they decided to free their arms and took Mukesh Kumar and Khaleel Ahmed to the cleaners, scoring 13 and 15 runs respectively in the 5th and 6th over.

Kohli and Faf looked in decent touch and continued to steady the RCB innings. The run-rate didn't spike up too much on a pitch that is stopping a touch but RCB looked to build a solid base to capitalise on later as Faf and Kohli took them to 79/0 at the end of 10 overs.

Delhi Capitals were desperately searching for a wicket and it was Mitchell Marsh, who ended the 82-run opening wicket stand by removing Du Plessis. In the very next ball, Marsh, who removed Glenn Maxwell for a duck and brought Delhi back in the game.

RCB were 82-2 after 10.4 overs and needed another partnership to keep them ahead in the game. The new batter Mahipal Lomror joined an already set Kohli at the crease and Delhi bowlers were able to keep things under their control for the next few overs.

Just when RCB were showing signs of dipping, Lomror propped them with a few lusty hits, especially against Kuldeep Yadav. On the other hand, Kohli anchored the innings with yet another half-century off 42 balls.

With 126/2 after 15 overs, RCB had the platform to finish strong and Lomror hit Mukesh Kumar for a four to make a move towards that. But Kohli flicked the ball straight to Khaleel, who got both hands to it, then juggled and kept tossing the ball close to his chest before finally clinging on to it at short fine leg.

The designated RCB finisher Dinesh Karthik then joined hands with Lomror, who hit Ishant for two fours and took 11 runs from that over. Khaleel Ahmed gave away 15 in his over as Karthik and Lomror smashed the left-arm pacer for a six and boundary.

Though Mukesh Kumar bowled a fantastic 19th over to concede just 6 runs, he couldn't prevent Lomror from getting his maiden IPL fifty off 26 balls. Khaleel started the last over of the innings by removing Karthik in his first ball and used his slower ones to perfection and gave just 9 runs to keep RCB to 181/4 in 20 overs.

Delhi Capitals players celebrate beating Royal Challengers Bangalore in match 50 of the Tata Indian Premier League held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on the 6th May 2023

(Photo: BCCI)

Delhi's Chase Anchored by Salt

Chasing a challenging total, openers David Warner and Philip Salt gave Delhi Capitals a flying start. From the very first over, Warner cleared his intent by smashing Siraj for two boundaries while Salt also joined the party and picked crucial boundaries and sixes off Maxwell and Philip to take Delhi to 29/0 after the first three overs.

With both Capitals openers batting freely, RCB skipper Du Plessis was forced to bring Wanindu Hasaranga in the 4th over itself but it didn't yield great results as Warner clubbed the spinner for a six and a boundary.

His batting partner Salt then took Siraj to the cleaners by hitting 6, 6, and 4 off consecutive deliveries which rattled the pacer. Siraj and Salt had a heated discussion at the pitch and umpires and Warner had to intervene to diffuse the situation.

It was Hazlewood, who finally gave RCB the much-needed breakthrough by removing Warner on a slower ball outside off. However, Mitchell Marsh came out swinging hard, picking up a four and a six and taking his to 70/1 -- Delhi Capitals' best Power-play in IPL 2023.

Even after the Power-play, Salt showed no signs of slowing down and made a mockery of the pitch and RCB bowling to get fifty off just 28 balls. On the other hand, Marsh was giving him enough support with his timely boundaries as Delhi Capitals were 115/1 after 10 overs.

All-rounder Harshal Patel, who came in as Impact Player replacing Kedhar Yadav, finally gave RCB a breakthrough by dismissing Mitchell Marsh. Rilee Rossouw was the new batter, joining Salt as Delhi Capitals needed 59 runs in 54 balls.

Meanwhile, Salt was just unstoppable. The England batter was fed some slot balls and he let them go free to carry the momentum before getting out in the 16th over for 87 off 45.

From there on, Rilee Rossouw (35 off 22) played an impressive knock and along with Axar Patel (8 off 3) took Delhi Capitals over the victory line in the 17th over.