DC vs CSK: 'Will have a chat,' Ponting on Pant bowling Curran ahead of Rabada in last over

Delhi Capitals Head Coach Ricky Ponting has expressed his feelings on skipper Risabh Pant opting to bowl Tom Curran in the final over of the first Qualifier of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, Delhi Capitals (DC) vs Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on October 10. Pant called Curran to bowl the final over of the match when CSK needed 13 runs off six balls to win the game. Curran was having a great outing in the match, with figures of 16 runs off three overs, with two wickets already to his name, bowled the final over. 

The plan didn't pay off for us tonight: Ricky Ponting

The choice of Curran instead of Rabada to bowl the final over backfired for DC and skipper Pant, as he was hit for three boundaries in the final over. There was a long discussion among the captain and his bowlers before the ball was handed over to Curran. While speaking on the skipper’s decision to opt for Curran ahead of Rabada in the post-match press conference, head coach Ponting said, “I haven’t had the chance to ask the captain that yet. Obviously, those calls are made on the field, and Tom, I think he bowled his first three overs for 16, he bowled really really well, done a good job. So that's down to the gut feeling of the captain out in the middle at the time, and Rishabh obviously thought that Tom was the right man to bowl the last over on the back of how well he already bowled in the game.”

Talking about the team’s plan after the match Ponting added, “So, it didn't pay off for us tonight. I think it will be a good learning experience for Tom again, he can work out how he can get better at closing that last over out, but probably just a bit better. We will get back into the rooms tonight and have a bit of the day-brief and certainly have a chat with Rishabh about all the things that happened in the game because that’s what we generally do.” Ponting further added that they look and deep dig into what happened in the game, irrespective of the results.

Ponting's full press conference after DC vs CSK:

Curran dismissed Moeen Ali off the first ball of his over, but then got hit for two boundaries by CSK skipper MS Dhoni and conceded a wide in the fourth ball. With four runs required to win off three balls, Curran was hit for a four in the fourth ball, as Dhoni finished off in style and went on to win the match. However, Rishabh Pant’s decision to bowl Curran instead of Rabada in the last over was questioned by the cricketing brains as Rabada had an over left from his quota. CSK went on to win the match and became the first team to seal their seat in the IPL 2021 final. Meanwhile, DC will now play Qualifier 2 against the winner of the Eliminator on October 13.

(Image: iplt20.com/ BCCI)