IPL 2026: Riyan Parag’s late gamble backfires as Delhi Capitals stay alive with win over RR

Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel (right) and Ashutosh Sharma celebrate (AP Photo)

New Delhi: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi blasted 43 runs off 17 balls. A voice nearby said jokingly, “We’ve gotten so used to his explosive score that it doesn’t even feel like an anomaly.” Come to think of it, it’s true.So when he came to the Arun Jaitley Stadium to take on the Delhi Capitals on Sunday night and took his IPL 2026 sixes to 43, including three in the night, it didn’t look out of place. He has now registered the most sixes by an Indian batter in a single IPL season, surpassing Abhishek Sharma’s 42 in 2024.Still, his collective total of 440 runs (before the match) put him outside the top 10 in the Orange Cap race. 46 runs later – facing 21 balls – with three sixes and five boundaries, he catapulted himself to sixth on the list. His stay in the middle was stopped by Madhav Tiwari.The 22-year-old Delhi Capitals seamer made his mark in the win against Punjab Kings on May 11. With his 2/40 and a valuable cameo of 18 unbeaten runs, the youngster from Madhya Pradesh found a place for the second match.He again proved decisive with figures of 2/27, although Lungi Ngidi (2/24) was more economical and Mitchell Starc (4/40) more lethal. Starc struck three times in the over – he had a chance of a hat-trick – with goals from Riyan Parag, Donovan Ferreira and Ravi Singh.However, the big impact was probably the wicket of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to not only put the brakes on the motor machine but also get rid of a potential massive total further down the order.Despite the goal, it seemed like a real possibility. RR were 160/2 after 14 overs with Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag stitching a 72-run partnership. Skipper Parag did most of the scoring with a 26-ball 51 to show for himself.In the end, Tiwari added the wicket of Shubham Dubey as the DC bowlers bowled in a manner they have not seen at home so far this season. They brought a lot of variation to the fore: Nigid with a mix of slower ‘uns and deliveries that climbed up to the batters.In the end, RR were bowled out for 193/8 – well short of a 220-plus total at one stage – with the last six overs, resulting in just 33 runs at the cost of six wickets.“Coming into this IPL season, I just thought I would take four or five variants with me and support them throughout the season. So I have been working on them and hopefully the results will work in my favour,” Tiwari said during the mid-innings interaction.“I guess there was a bit of help from the wicket. It was catchy so I thought I could use more of them. I just wanted to get into a high-pressure situation in the nets itself. So bowling with (David) Miller and bowling with Ashutosh (Sharma) and KL (Rahul) helped me. “I was just trying to figure out how to play against these batsmen, which will help me in this tournament,” he continued.In reply, Delhi Capitals looked set to go for 194 runs, just as Rajasthan Royals got off to a strong start. Abhishek Porel and KL Rahul put together 105 runs on the scoreboard in under 10 overs and the target looked good in the crosshairs.But, like RR’s effort, DC also lost the plot with one wicket after another. Abhishek Porel (51), KL Rahul (56) and Axar Patel (34*) all reached double figures but the chase fizzled. Sahil Parakh (9), Tristan Stubbs (4) and David Miller (9) all came and perished without much of a role.Much like the trio of DC sailors who took the game back, it was Jofra Archer who kept them in the hunt. His 2/35 kept RR alive in a match with wickets and run flow restricted.Riyan Parag’s decision to pass the ball to Donovan Ferreira proved to be a big turning point. In the 18th over, Ferreira came on for the first time of the night and was slapped for 16 runs to ease any pressure.12 runs in the penultimate over and 10 off two balls in the last over saw DC go past the finish line at the end to break their losing streak at home.In the grand scheme of things, RR are still alive in the playoff race, but they cruised with the bat on the night and had DC needing 35 runs off 3 overs, a missed opportunity.