(Football news) Jake Fraser and David WarnerMcGurk at the summit. In the center is Rishabh Pant. And then Tristan Stubbs. The batting lineup for the Delhi Capitals is full with talents from the present and the future. One of them, 21-year-old Indian uncapped player Abishek Porel, has been quietly contributing.
The storyline was the same when Delhi Capitals and the Rajasthan Royals met on Tuesday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Fraser-McGurk got the team off to a brilliant start, scoring fifty runs in just 19 balls. The finishing prowess of Stubbs carried them well past 200 in the final overs. But in between, Porel’s 36-ball 65 was what kept Delhi Capitals going.
The innings took Porel’s tally for the season to 267, at an average of 33.37 and a strike rate of 157.98. The significance of those numbers, and Porel’s versatility, becomes evident once you realise he has batted at six different positions – from opening to No. 9 – across his ten innings.
Opening the innings against RR, Porel faced just five balls in the first four overs. But after R Ashwin dismissed Fraser-McGurk, he took over. And when Ashwin bowled one short, he rocked back and pulled him over deep midwicket for a six. In the next over, he hacked Sandeep Sharma in the same direction for a four to ensure Delhi Capitals did not lose momentum.
Before this match, Yuzvendra Chahal had dismissed Porel twice in eight balls for just five runs. On Tuesday, Porel did not let him settle. When Chahal came on to bowl, Porel jumped out of his crease straightaway and hit him over midwicket for a flat six. In all, Porel scored 13 off five balls against him.
He reached his fifty – his first in the IPL – in 28 balls. It came with a six off Avesh Khan, once again over midwicket. Overall, he scored 33 of his 65 runs in that region. By the time he got out, DC were well placed at 144 for 4 in the 13th over, with the platform set for Stubbs.
After the match, Delhi Capital’s assistant coach Pravin Amre lauded Porel’s “special innings”. “It is always gold when an Indian batter is scoring runs,” he said. “As a coaching group, we were very happy with the way he was striking even in the nets. So it is good to see him doing well.”
Porel joined Delhi Capitlas in 2023, as a replacement for Pant. Till then, he had played only three T20s and had scored 20 runs off as many balls. He had similar returns in IPL 2023 as well: 33 runs off 31 balls from four innings.
Despite that, Delhi Capitals retained Porel for the 2024 season. With Pant back, it didn’t seem likely he would start in the playing XI. When DC collapsed against Punjab Kings in their opening match, though, they brought him in as an Impact Player. Coming in at No. 9, Porel struck an unbeaten 32 off just ten balls to take the side to a competitive 174 for 9.
“That was awesome,” Amre said of Porel’s knock. “He was not sure till about the 18th over if he was going to play. But he came and he delivered.” Though DC went on to lose, Porel’s innings meant he played every match from there on.
In the latest Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Porel had found success as an opener. He was the second-highest run-getter for Bengal, scoring 239 in seven innings at an average of 39.83 and a strike rate of 152.22. But with DC having Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Prithvi Shaw and Fraser-McGurk to choose from, Porel had to start in the lower middle order.
He was promoted to No. 3 against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede and hit 41 off 31 balls. Three matches later, he hit 42 off 22 while batting at No. 4 against Sunrisers Hyderabad and walking in at the conclusion of the second over.
The team management took notice and decided to make him open the innings. Against RR, he even kept Shaw out of the XII. “Porel plays the new ball very well, and we wanted a left-right combination also, so we got him up the order,” Amre said.
With the victory over RR, Delhi Capitals moved up to fifth place in the standings. Their chances of making the playoffs are still slim. They might need to depend on other outcomes even if they win their next two games and total 16 points. However, if Porel continues to act in this manner, their mission may become a little bit easier.
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