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CAPE TOWN : South Africa’s power hitters make a compelling case for why they can emerge winners of the T20 World Cup in the United States and West Indies, but whether they have the bowlers to back it up is the big question heading into the June 1-29 tournament.
The Proteas were walloped in the third and final T20 against the West Indies on Sunday, going down by eight wickets to lose the series 3-0.
Mathematically, five teams are fighting for two remaining spots in the IPL 2024 playoffs, with Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals already assured of the other two spots. Practically, though, the fight is between three teams - Chennai Super Kings, SunRisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bengaluru are in with a good chance. Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants are too far away on Net run-rate. LSG were in with a good chance but their loss to Delhi Capitals on Tuesday means that advancing to the playoffs is almost improbable.
Following the Delhi Capitals' (DC) final league game of the IPL 2024, which they won by 19 runs against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), India pacer Ishant Sharma revealed the special bond with DC head coach Ricky Ponting, saying the Australian is like his elder brother. Ishant was the star for Delhi on Tuesday night where anything less than a loss would have confirmed their elimination from playoff contention. He was adjudged the player of the match for his bowling figures of 3/34 in four overs which included three crucial scalps of Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda, giving his side an excellent start while defending 209 target.
Kagiso Rabada's premature departure from the Indian Premier League (IPL) might be a nervous jolt to the Proteas' system in their build-up to the T20 World Cup, but his apparent leg injury won't affect his availability for the showpiece tournament in the USA and Caribbean next month.
Ultra-aggressive cricket, especially in the powerplay, has transformed the shortest format but it remains to be seen if the players can replicate it in the upcoming T20 World Cup in the Americas, said Lucknow Super Giants head coach Justin Langer. IPL teams have scored 200 or more 37 times this season so far but LSG managed to achieve the feat only once -- against Chennai Super Kings last month -- and Langer admitted that they had struggled in the powerplay.
Commanding fifties from Abishek Porel and Tristan Stubbs was complemented by a clinical bowling effort as Delhi Capitals kept their slim IPL play-off hopes alive with a 19-run win over Lucknow Super Giants in their final league fixture on Tuesday. Porel (58 off 33 balls) and Shai Hope (38 off 27 balls) shared 92 runs off 49 balls to give the hosts an aggressive start. Tristan Stubbs (57 not out off 25) then hammered three fours and four maximums in his blitzkrieg and added 47 and 50 runs with Rishabh Pant (33) and Axar Patel (14 not out) to power DC to 208 for 4. The bowlers then joined the party to restrict the visitors to 189 for 9, despite a belligerent 27-ball 61 from Nicholas Pooran and a 33-ball 58 not out by Arshad Khan.
Chennai Super Kings were dealt a massive blow in the race for IPL 2024 playoffs after a massive 35-run defeat against Gujarat Titans on Friday. CSK remain fourth in the IPL 2024 points table with 12 points from 12 matches and the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side will now have to win their final two matches and depend on other teams' results to potentially find a spot in the Top 4. On the other hand, Gujarat Titans kept their dreams alive as they now have 10 points from 12 matches. While the chances are quite slim, they can end up qualifying for the playoffs with 14 points if other results go their way.