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PREVIEW: Fresh from two consecutive victories, a rejuvenated Delhi Daredevils (DD) will take on injury-ravaged Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) in their last group stage outing of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Feroze Shah Kotla Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday. With five wins out of seven games, the home side have reached a new momentum after registering consecutive wins against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Gujarat Lions to occupy the second spot in the team standings. On the other hand, having lost key players like Kevin Pietersen, Steve Smith, Faf du Plessis and Mitchell Marsh, the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Pune franchise have struggled to find the momentum going in their favour, managing only two wins from eight outings. [caption id=“attachment_2757240” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Delhi Daredevils captain Zaheer Khan. AFP[/caption] Unlike the previous seasons, the Daredevils have approached each game with a horses for courses approach, making the right changes under the watchful eyes of team mentor Rahul Dravid and coach Paddy Upton. The credit for Delhi’s turnaround also goes to skipper Zaheer Khan, who has managed to take early breakthroughs while opening the bowling and also at the death. The franchise’s decision to invest in the youngsters has also borne fruit in the tournament so far. Young Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson have been a revelation in the batting order while leg-spinner Amit Mishra and his left-arm partner Shahbaz Nadeem have been impressive in containing the rival batsmen and also picking up wickets at regular intervals. The overseas players have also contributed to Delhi’s success with South African keeper-batsman Quinton de Kock providing decent starts to the team. His Protea teammates — Imran Tahir, JP Duminy and Chris Morris — have also played a pivotal role in the side’s success. West Indian hitman Carlos Braithwate, who was included for the match against KKR, enthralled the Delhi crowd with his all-round efforts — 34 from 11 balls and three wickets — to pocket the man of the match award. On the other hand, with just six more matches to go in the league stage, Dhoni’s brigade will have their task cut out for Thursday’s game. Left with very little to choose from, the team will bank on a good start from the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, George Bailey and Usman Khwaja, apart from Dhoni himself in the middle order. Even if the batters have done a decent job, the Pune franchise have found it tough to defend with the bowling unit letting Dhoni down. Senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has been a shadow of his previous self while pacer Ashok Dinda and Thisara Perera have been milked for runs by the opposition batters.
IPL 2016, DD vs RPS as it happened: Rahane half-century powers Pune to third win
Catch the live updates of the 33rd match of IPL 2016 between Delhi Daredevils and Rising Pune Supergiants at the Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi here.
 "IPL 2016, DD vs RPS as it happened: Rahane half-century powers Pune to third win")
50 runs in 3.1 overs - Shami's most expensive figures in his T20 career #DDvRPS
— Bharath Seervi (@SeerviBharath) May 5, 2016
Shami bowls five wides, concedes 20 in an over and now gets wickets off no-balls. #NotHisNight#IPL9 #IPL2016 #DDvRPS
— Suneer (@suneerchowdhary) May 5, 2016
After 20 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 166/3 ( Ajinkya Rahane 63 , Thisara Perera 14)
Shami to bowl the last over, with Pune just one hit away from their third win now. OUT! NO-BALL! A front-foot no-ball by Shami ruins what could have been the dismissal of Perera, who is caught near midwicket while looking to slice the delivery towards the deep! Scores level now. FOUR! Rising Pune Supergiants win by 7 wickets, with Rahane flicking the next delivery towards deep square-leg to end the match!
Msd must be mighty relieved to see thisara hit those 2 sixes. Imp win for the team. Gives them a lifeline. Usman good addition at the top.
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) May 5, 2016
After 19 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 160/3 ( Ajinkya Rahane 59 , Thisara Perera 13)
OUT! A brilliant running catch by Sam Billings at deep midwicket results in the dismissal of Pune captain Dhoni for 27 off 20, with Pune needing another 17 to win from 11 balls with seven wickets in hand. Perera is the new batsman at the crease, and launches the first delivery that he faces over long-on for a huge six! Samson misses out on a stumping chance, which infuriates Tahir. Second six for Perera, this time slogging the ball towards midwicket off a pitched up delivery! Single off an outside edge to end the over, with Pune needing three off the last over.
After 18 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 146/2 ( Ajinkya Rahane 58 , MS Dhoni (C) (W) 27)
Shami returns to the attack for the 18th over, with Pune really needing a couple of big hits at this stage to get the pressure off their back. Dhoni pulls hard in the first ball towards deep square-leg, but can only get a single. FIVE WIDES! That’s a massive blow for Delhi, with Shami trying to follow Rahane, and pitching it wide outside leg. Keeper Samson dives, and fails to stop the ball from travelling towards the fine-leg boundary rope. Single off the third ball. FOUR! Top-edge off Dhoni’s bat in the third ball towards fine-leg! SIX! Length ball from Shami, and the Pune skipper comes down the track and whacks it towards long-on! Brathwaite saves a couple of runs for Delhi with a fine stop at deep third-man off the fifth. Dhoni retains strike with a single off the last.
After 17 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 126/2 ( Ajinkya Rahane 57 , MS Dhoni (C) (W) 13)
Good tight over by Imran Tahir in the 16th, conceding just four off it, as Pune need another 43 from the last 24 balls. Mishra maintains the high pressure levels on Pune with an equally good over, not giving any room for Rahane and Dhoni to send the ball towards the orbit. Rahane survives a run-out chance, with Mishra failing to collect the ball while breaking the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Just six off the 17th, with Pune needing 37 off 18 now.
After 15 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 116/2 ( Ajinkya Rahane 52 , MS Dhoni (C) (W) 9)
Brathwaite returns for his second over, and bowls a short one to Rahane outside leg, which Rahane sends towards fine-leg with a pull. The 100 comes up as well for Pune, who are well on their way towards securing their third win of the tournament. OUT! Tiwary departs for 21 off 18 while looking to slog a googly from Tahir towards deep midwicket, with Sam Billings taking an athletic diving catch at that region. One Ranchi lad’s departure leads to another’s arrival. Pawan Negi is introduced in the following over, Dhoni comes down the track in the second ball, and launches the ball high over the umpire’s head for a massive six! Pune need another 47 from the last 30 balls at the end of the 15th over.
After 12 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 94/1 ( Ajinkya Rahane 41 , Saurabh Tiwary 19)
Skipper Duminy introduces himself in the 10th over, and Rahane slices a full delivery from him over extra-cover for his fifth four! SIX! Tiwary comes down the track, and lofts the ball over wide long-on off Mishra, who makes things worse by overstepping in the following delivery. Bowls above waist in the free-hit for the freebie to carry over. Rahane attempts to whack the following delivery as well, but can only get a single after Sam Billings takes an easy catch at deep midwicket. Meanwhile, Imran Tahir is introduced into the attack in the 12th over. Seven conceded by the South African leggie in his first over, with Pune needing another 69 to win from 48 balls.
After 9 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 65/1 ( Ajinkya Rahane 30 , Saurabh Tiwary 5)
The dangerous Amit Mishra is introduced in the seventh over, and Delhi will look to get a breakthrough at this stage. Khawaja gets a stumping scare in the fifth ball, but keeps his foot firmly grounded inside the crease. Good first over by Mishra, giving away just three runs in his first. Yadav concedes six off the eighth to complete his quota of overs, conceding 25 off it. Mishra gets the key breakthrough, removing Khawaja for 30 in the ninth over, with Pune losing their first wicket with 59 on board. The consistent Saurabh Tiwary gets off the mark with a four towards third man off the first ball that he faces.
After 6 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 50/0 ( Ajinkya Rahane 25 , Usman Khawaja 25)
FOUR MORE! Mohammed Shami is introduced into the attack for the fourth over, and Rahane pulls the short ball outside leg towards fine-leg, with the ball beating keeper Samson’s gloves on its way. Expensive over for Shami to start things off with, conceding a boundary to Khawaja off the last ball of the over with a thick edge off the Pakistan-born Aussie’s bat towards third man. The following over by Yadav witnesses the first six of the Pune innings, with Khawaja muscling the penultimate delivery of the over towards long-off! Yet another expensive over by Shami, conceding 12 runs, including two fours, as the 50 comes up for Pune without the loss of a wicket at the end of powerplay! Superb progress so far for RPS, who need another 113 from 84 balls.
After 3 overs,Rising Pune Supergiants 16/0 ( Ajinkya Rahane 7 , Usman Khawaja 9)
Rising Pune Supergiants have opted to make a change in their opening slot, with skipper Dhoni sending Usman Khawaja as Ajinkya Rahane’s opening partner in place of Saurabh Tiwary, who probably will come in at number three. Jayant Yadav bowls the first over, and flicks the second ball towards fine-leg to bring up the first boundary of the day. Six runs off the first over. Carlos Brathwaite bowls the second over, and Khawaja gets his first boundary as well, cutting the third ball towards backward point. Good over bowled by Yadav in the third, with just three coming off it.
After 20 overs,Delhi 162/7 ( Pawan Negi 19 , Mohammed Shami 2)
Good final over by Boland, conceding just five off the 19th, including five singles. Dinda to bowl the final over, and concedes two off the first, before hammering the second ball of the over over long-on! Boundary off the penultimate ball, with Negi hammering the ball towards extra-cover, before ending the over with a single. 13 runs conceded in final over, with Delhi reaching a competitve 162 at the end of 20 overs.
After 18 overs,Delhi 144/7 ( Pawan Negi 3 , Mohammed Shami 0)
Murugan starts off with a full-toss, which is hammered towards deep square-leg by skipper Duminy. SIX! Timed by Brathwaite to perfection! Flighted, and pitched along the middle stump, and the ball disappears over wide long-on! SIX MORE! Full toss out side leg, and Brathwaite sends it flying high over midwicket.
SIX! Boland comes in bowl the first over, and Brathwaite displays his immense power with a flat six over the bowler’s head, carving the shot out of a half-volley just outside off. Pune however, make a terrific comeback later in the over, with Brathwaite and Duminy departing in successive deliveries as Delhi get reduced to 138 for six at the end of 17 overs. Ravi Ashwin comes in to bowl his final over of the day.
OUT! Delhi lose their seventh wicket with 143 on board, with Jayant Yadav departing for one off three after Negi calls for a risky second run, with a direct hit from Saurabh Tiwary towards the non-striker’s end doing the job.
No batsman in #IPL has managed to make two 50+ scores in their first two games
— Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) May 5, 2016
Sam Billing was in line to do so. But couldn't do it.#DDvRPS
After 15 overs,Delhi 112/4 ( JP Duminy (C) 27 , Carlos Brathwaite 1)
It’s been ages since a boundary was last hit till the 12th over, and Delhi will look to boost their run-rate, especially with Billings on strike. And Billings it is to break the dry spell! Straight delivery pitched between middle and off, and Billings hammers it over midwicket! Consecutive sixes for Billings — coming down the track and hammering the faster delivery outside off for a straight hit! 100 up for Delhi in the 13th over, Ashwin conceding 18 in his third!
Billings comes down the track again, and this time hammers the first ball of the following over by Murugan over the bowler’s head. OUT! Billings attempts a reverse hit — completely changing his stance even before Bhatia got into his delivery stride. Looks to clear wide long-off, where Rahane holds on to an easy catch. The Englishman departs after a valuable 24 off 15, as Delhi lose their fourth with 110 on board in the 15th over. Another wicket after the timeout. Meanwhile, Brathwaite has walked out to bat now, and Delhi will need another special knock from him to put them in a commanding position.
Straight down the ground for a four! @sambillings keeps them coming. More please, champ! #DilDilli #DDvRPS
— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) May 5, 2016
After 12 overs,Delhi 83/3 ( JP Duminy (C) 19 , Sam Billings 5)
Bhatia strikes in the very first over after the time-out, with Karun Nair slicking a half-volley towards deep cover, where Thisara Perera takes a fine running catch. Stumping scare for Duminy in the next delivery, with Dhoni whipping the bails off in a flash, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Sam Billings is the new batsman at the crease, and gets off the mark with a double off his first ball. Murugan Ashwin is introduced in the attack for the next over, and concedes eight runs in the form of ones and twos.
After 9 overs,Delhi 63/2 ( Karun Nair 31 , JP Duminy (C) 8)
Stand-in skipper Duminy walks out to bat after Samson’s dismissal as Ravi Ashwin is handed the ball for the first over after powerplay. Ashwin concedes six singles in his first over, and there is another bowling change to follow — with skipper Dhoni introducing Rajat Bhatia into the attack in the next over. Duminy and Karun are dealing in singles at the moment, with five of them coming off Bhatia’s first over. Meanwhile, Delhi are scoring at a rate of seven per over, reaching 63/2 after 9 overs.
50 up for #DD from 6.2 overs. Karun looking in good touch at 26 off 14 balls. #DDvRPS https://t.co/B1EHl6UJS5
— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) May 5, 2016
After 6 overs,Delhi 48/2 ( Karun Nair 24 , )
FOUR! Boland comes in to bowl in the fourth over, and gets hammered for a four off beautiful cover drive by Nair off a full, wide delivery!! 2nd boundary for Nair, and he is displaying exquisit form today! More runs conceded by Boland, with Samson guiding the penultimate ball down towards fine leg off a short delivery.
Nair continues to exhibit his elegant cover drives in the next over, hammering the first ball off a half-volley from Dinda through the covers! No-ball for being above waist in the penultimate delivery, with Nair hammering it towards deep fine-leg. Nair swings his bat hard in the free hit, but his bat slips out of his hand and travels further than the ball, which land in Dhoni’s gloves. Boundary off the third ball thanks to an outside edge off Nair’s bat.
OUT! Boland removes Samson off the last ball of the powerplay, with the batsman giving a half-hearted push to a length delivery towards midwicket, where Ravi Ashwin takes the catch! Samson departs for 20 off 17, as Delhi reach 48 for two at the end of powerplay.
5 different players have opened for DD in this IPL - most among the 8 teams. #DDvRPS
— Bharath Seervi (@SeerviBharath) May 5, 2016
After 3 overs,Delhi 17/1 ( Sanju Samson (W) 10 , Karun Nair 4)
Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson walk out to bat for Delhi. Ashoke Dinda to bowl the first over of the day. Good first over by Dinda, with just two coming off it. Meanwhile, Samson gets the first boundary of the day with an outside edge, that sends the ball flying over third man towards the boundary in the second over, bowled by Perera. Consecutive fours for Samson, despatching the next one towards midwicket. Nine off the 2nd over. OUT! Dinda gets the first strike by knocking Pant’s off-stump over. Karun Nair walks out to bat, and gets off the mark in style with a boundary off an outside edge towards third man.
#DD are away, Pant flicks it for a couple. A very good first over from Dinda. Just 2 off it. #DDvRPS https://t.co/B1EHl6UJS5
— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) May 5, 2016
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