PBKS vs DC, IPL 2025: Sameer Rizvi, Karun Nair shine as Delhi Capitals dents Punjab Kings' hopes of top-two finish with 6-wicket win

The race for the top two positions remains highly competitive as the Delhi Capitals concluded their IPL campaign with a remarkable victory over the heavily favored Punjab Kings on Saturday. Sameer Rizvi shone brightly, achieving his maiden IPL half-century, while Karun Nair contributed a crucial 44 runs to propel their team to success.

Punjab Kings set a formidable target of 208 runs for Delhi Capitals, with Shreyas Iyer also scoring a half-century and Marcus Stoinis delivering an explosive performance with a rapid 44 runs off just 16 balls. Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, Punjab maintained a strong run rate, thanks in part to the efforts of Mustafizur Rahman and Kuldeep Yadav, who claimed three and two wickets, respectively. Vipraj Nigam also took two wickets, but the Punjab batters aggressively targeted Mohit Sharma and Mukesh Kumar, enabling them to amass a substantial total.

Neehal Wadhera (16) struggled to find his rhythm and was dismissed by Mukesh Kumar. Mustafizur then claimed his second wicket, taking down Shashank Singh (11) as Punjab Kings (PBKS) lost their fifth wicket at a total of 144 runs. Captain Shreyas Iyer (53) notched yet another half-century before falling to Kuldeep Yadav, who, just four deliveries later, also dismissed Azmat Omarzai (1). Mustafizur struck once more in the final over, removing Marco Jansen (0). However, Marcus Stoinis showcased his explosive batting, finishing with an impressive unbeaten 44 runs off just 16 balls, propelling PBKS past the 200-run mark to conclude their innings at 206 for 8.

In response, Delhi Capitals (DC) started strongly, accumulating 55 runs for the first wicket before KL Rahul (35) was dismissed by Marco Jansen. Faf du Plessis (23) followed suit in the next over, as PBKS mounted a robust comeback. Sediqullah Atal (22) was the next to fall, succumbing to Praveen Dubey.

Amidst the pressure, Karun Nair (44) found his form and steadied the innings for DC before being clean bowled by Harpreet Brar. Ultimately, Sameer Rizvi (58 not out) and Tristan Stubbs (18 not out) formed an unbroken partnership of 53 runs for the fifth wicket, leading DC to victory by six wickets with three balls remaining.

Earlier, Delhi Capitals won the toss and chose to bat first against the Punjab Kings. Notably, Axar Patel was unavailable for Delhi, leading Faf du Plessis to take the helm as captain for this match.

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