IPL 2021: Mayank Agarwal's 99* on captaincy debut takes PBKS to 166 as DC bowlers kept them in checkMayank Agarwal took not just the captaincy from KL Rahul but also took the mantle of anchoring the Punjab Kings innings and sailing it towards the safer shores as the opening batsman played an unbeaten innings of 99 runs off just 58 balls to help his side post a competitive total of 166 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Kings didn't have a great start as they lost the opener, Prabhsimran Singh, in the fourth over at the score of 17. Chris Gayle arrived at No 3 and provided the much-needed momentum with a four and a car-shattering six but Kagiso Rabada came back and castled the left-hander's stumps.

Gayle's departure meant the No 1 T20 batsman in the world, Dawid Malan making his debut in the IPL was in the middle in the powerplay itself. Rabada, Avesh Khan and the ever-dependable local boy Axar Patel kep the run-rate in check and didn't let Mayank and Malan get away at any point.

Delhi Capitals kept the run-rate under run-a-ball till 11 overs and were in the driver's seat till that point. Malan, who had taken up some balls until that point needed to go for his shots if the Kings had to get to a competitive total against a strong Delhi batting line-up.

Malan, hit a six and a four in the next over bowled by Ishant Sharma but soon got out as Patel clean bowled him. And the wickets kept falling at the other end.

Meanwhile, the stand-in captain Mayank Agarwal was set now and ready to launch and he did. The first evident shot of aggression from Mayank was the pull-shot off Rabada over mid-wicket in the 15th over and then the opening batsman didn't stop.

He kept playing his shots, a six of Ishant Sharma, a couple of boundaries of Axar and some late sixes of Rabada and Avesh Khan meant Mayank fell one short of his second century in the IPL but that 99* wasn't less than a hundred as he was at 37 off 32 balls at one point and he scored 62 runs off his last 26 balls in some Virat Kohli-esque acceleration to help Punjab Kings get to a fighting total of 166/6 in their 20 overs.

Source : DNA India