By Robert 
Less than 24 hours after a record 246-run chase was effortlessly pulled off in Hyderabad, the IPL caravan moved to another batter-friendly venue — Delhi. At the Arun Jaitley Stadium, known for its small boundaries and high scores, bowlers have long struggled to stay relevant. In IPL 2024, eight of the ten innings at the venue saw teams breach the 200-run mark. Spinners, in particular, endured the heat — conceding runs at 10.48 an over, just a shade better than Hyderabad.
But in Delhi, risk came with reward. The venue had the best spin strike rate (17.2) across the 10 grounds that hosted five or more games last season. And that trend held strong on Sunday, as spinners accounted for nine of the twelve wickets (excluding run-outs), with deliveries on a good length proving particularly effective.
Delhi Capitals’ spin trio returned figures of 3 for 34 from such deliveries, at an economy of just 6.58. Mumbai Indians batters, however, countered smartly — especially with the sweep shot. From 11 attempts, they scored 35 runs using sweeps, with 18 off 6 coming from good-length balls. It paid off, but also led to Rohit Sharma’s dismissal, as he misread a googly and fell victim to the variation.
On the flip side, Delhi looked in complete control of their chase when Karun Nair rocketed to a 22-ball fifty. Mitchell Santner, with just one wicket from his first five games, was taken on early — Abishek Porel cracked a boundary off a short ball in his first over. Karn Sharma was welcomed with a slog-swept six by Nair, mimicking Suryakumar Yadav’s earlier approach. But Karn struck back by tossing one up and removing Porel, before Nair closed out the over with back-to-back sweeps for fours.
Santner was then dispatched for another boundary, but he hit back emphatically — delivering a 90.5 kmph ball, pitched back-of-a-length, that spun sharply and clipped the top of off to dismiss the in-form Nair. It was a momentum-shifting moment.
Shortly after Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Axar Patel, a ball change followed — and with it, a turning point. Despite heavy dew, Santner and Karn found renewed grip and bounce with the new ball, making the sweep and slog-sweep increasingly risky.
KL Rahul and Tristan Stubbs, DC’s finishers in their recent win over RCB, both fell victim to mistimed sweep attempts — top-edging into waiting hands in consecutive overs from Karn Sharma.
Hardik Pandya’s decision to hand the 18th over to Santner, despite the match hanging in the balance, raised a few eyebrows. Vipraj Nigam briefly threatened to turn the tide with a six and a four — the former off a 92.6 kmph ball, the latter a sharp adjustment to one pushed wide at 97.1 kmph. But Santner had been watching closely. With the batter’s footwork giving him a cue, he slowed it down to 74.7 kmph and tossed it wide — deceiving Vipraj completely for a smart stumping.
By then, the pressure and Mumbai’s famed death-bowling depth had taken hold. Fittingly, it was Santner again who closed it out — this time with a direct hit from short mid-wicket, wrapping up a dramatic win and a brilliant comeback performance from MI’s spinners.