IPL 2021 Match 7: Rajasthan Royals beat Delhi Capitals by 3 wickets — as it happened

Miller and Morris hand Royals improbable 3-wicket win

Back against the ball, left-handed batsman David Miller produced a 62-run knock and it was followed by Chris Morris' cameo of 36 runs off just 18 balls as Rajasthan Royals defeated Delhi Capitals by three wickets on Thursday at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

The Royals were in trouble when they lost Miller in the 16th over, still needing 44 off 25 balls, but Morris had other ideas. And with 27 needed off the final two overs, he stepped up to the occasion to take his side over the line with two balls to spare. With this win, Rajasthan have registered their first victory in this edition of the IPL.

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Earlier, electing to bowl, Jaydev Unadkat (3-15) and Mustafizur Rahman (2-29) helped Royals restrict Delhi to below-par 147/8.

Avesh Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Delhi with three wickets while Kagiso Rabada and Chris Woakes struck twice each.

Relive the match as it happened ...

Half time report: Tidy Rajasthan Royals bowling restrict Delhi to 147

Kolkata: A disciplined Rajasthan Royals attack, led by senior left arm paceman Jaydev Unadkat (3/15), broke the back of Delhi Capitals batting as the latter finished at a modest 147 for eight in Mumbai today.

After both openers Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan fell cheaply to Unadkat, the onus was on skipper Rishabh Pant to anchor the Delhi innings. Pant did his job with a fluent 51, which had nine boundaries but no sixes, but the pressure got on to him as wickets started falling in regular intervals.

The total may look a bit under par, but with the new ball doing something, it will be left to the classy Kagiso Rabada and Avesh Khan to create some pressure with early wickets.

Delhi Capitals hold the edge against Rajasthan Royals

Kolkata: After two low-scoring thrillers in Chennai, the action returns to more batting-friendly conditions of the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai where Delhi Capitals lock horns against Rajasthan Royals on Thursday.

The Rishabh Pant-led Capitals, runners-up last season, may look marginal favourites because of the all-round strength of the squad and a greater self belief but it will be a mistake to write off the Royals – whose captain Sanju Samson played the best innings in the first week of the league albeit in a losing cause.

The Royals have been laid low by a injuries to two of their most prized overseas recruits – Jofra Archer and now Ben Stokes – but such instances often help in galvanizing a side better against odds. Liam Livingstone, the England batsman, is expected to fill in for Stokes – which may see Jos Buttler coming up as an opener again.

The head-to-head record between the two shows they are on an even keel (11-11), but Delhi has really turned themselves around in the last two years.