Youngster Abhishek Porel’s fierce knock helped Delhi Capitals despite a strong performance from the Kings XI Punjab (PBKS) bowlers in the first innings of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on Saturday (DC) scored a total of 174 runs and lost 9 wickets. PBKS captain Shikhar Dhawan won the toss and asked the visitors to bat first at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur. Two Australian batsmen, David Warner and Mitchell Marsh, opened the innings for Delhi Capitals. Both the batsmen started off very aggressively and soon scored a 39-run partnership.

The first wicket to fall was Marsh’s. He was dismissed in the fourth over after scoring 20 runs off 12 balls with the help of two fours and two sixes off the bowling of Harshal Patel.

Next up was West Indies’ star wicketkeeper-batsman, who played a small but crucial innings for the team. The right-handed batsman scored 33 runs from 25 balls in the innings, which featured two boundaries and two sixes.

You talk about influence, we talk about Borelpic.twitter.com/XoZaGmJERk

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) March 23, 2024

DC captain Rishabh Pant came on after the fall of the second wicket and scored only 18 runs in the match, including two fours. Notably, Pant missed last season due to injuries sustained in a life-threatening car accident in December 2022.

Star India all-rounder Axar Patel scored a crucial 21 runs off 13 balls with 2 fours and a six. Eventually, the visitors brought in Porel as an impact player to replace Ricky Bhui. Porrell scored an unbeaten 32 runs off just 10 balls, finishing with a strike rate of 320 with the help of 4 boundaries and 2 sixes.

For the home team, Arsdeep Singh and Harshal Patel took two wickets each as they conceded 28 and 47 runs respectively in the four overs. Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet and Rahul Chahar grabbed a wicket each in their respective spells.