IPL 2023 DC vs PBKS: Punjab's playoffs hopes shattered as Delhi ...

Chasing a big score, Punjab Kings didn't have the best start and lost the skipper Shikhar Dhawan early. Liam Livingstone and Atharva Taide tried hard to take bring the match home, but it was the day for Delhi bowlers who performed well under the circumstances.

Sam Curran started the bowling attack for Punjab with Kagiso Rabada and both pacers restricted the Delhi batsman for initial two overs, but then David Warner and Prithvi Shaw changed their game and started smashing the bowlers for boundaries.

Punjab skipper Shikhar Dhawan tried changing the bowlers and introduced Arshdeep Singh and Rahul Chahar for the next level of attack, but the David Warner and Prithvi Shaw were on fire, not flinching at any bowler on the field.

Nathan Ellis also tried his luck but faced similar punishment with both Warner and Shaw looking undefeatable.

It was in the 11th over that Sam Curran finally brought the breakthrough and took out Warner who personally contributed 46 runs to the innings. But, then came the explosive Rilee Rossouw who was clear with his intention and smashed two boundaries on his first three deliveries.

The wicket of Warner seemed to have no impact on the psyche of DC batters as they continued their fiery batting. Rilee Rossouw smashed some exceptional boundaries, but soon Sam Curran dismissed Prithvi Shaw and now the PBKS hoped to find some relief.

Rilee Rossouw completed his 50 and kept up the pressure on bowlers and on the other side Philip Salt also started to dominate the PBKS bowling attack.

At the end of first innings, the final score of DC was 213/2.

Chasing a massive target of 214 runs, Punjab Kings had a disastrous start with the first over being maiden and Ishant Sharma dismissing skipper Shikhar Dhawan in the second over. Another opener Prabhsimran Singh attempted to recover from the early loss but soon Axar Patel packed him back to the dugout.

Now Atharva Taide and Liam Livingstone were on the ground and both players showcased patience and played responsible innings with occasional boundaries. The big score was slowly getting covered and PBKS fans got back to life.

Atharva Taide completed his fifty, but was visibly uncomfortable on the ground, after contributing 55 runs for the team, the player decided to retire hurt and Jitesh Sharma came to bat, but just after three balls, Anrich Nortje dismissed him on a score of 0.

Delhi Capitals displayed some poor fielding and also missed a chance to run out the batters at both ends. Slowly, Livingstone was changing the pace of innings and was displaying his true colors. Shahrukh Khan also smashed a stunning six and the Punjab Kings were still in the game.

But, Khaleel Ahmad dashed all hopes for Punjab fans as he dismissed Shahrukh Khan, and now the faces of the PBKS dugout were clearly telling the story.

Sam Curran and Liam Livingstone played some explosive boundaries, bringing the cheer back in the PBKS crowd, but then Anrich Nortje struck again and dismissed Sam Curran. Next came Harpreet Brar who sacrificed his wicket in a silly run out.

Finally, the struggle was over and at the end of the innings, PBKS was at 198/8.