Warner pummels Chargers into submission

HYDERABAD: A target of 188 was a tall order but not for the formidable Delhi Daredevils.

Led by the swashbuckling David Warner (54-ball 109 n.o.) and Naman Ojha (46-ball 64 n.o.), the Delhi team raced to an emphatic nine-wicket victory over Deccan Chargers at Uppal Stadium on Thursday.

With their ninth win from 12 matches, DD rightly regained the pole position with 18 points. DD won with 20 deliveres to spare. The Warner-Ojha second-wicket partnership realised 189 runs off 77 deliveries, with an incredible strike rate of over 190.

Warner's dominant innings overshadowed the brilliance of Shikhar Dhawan (49-ball 85) and Cameron White (40-ball 64) on the day. The huge crowd of 32,000 crowd were in a shock when the innocuous off-spin of Dhawan saw the back of Virender Sehwag.

After hitting the first delivery to the long-off, Sehwag skied to point and White ran backwards to hold the catch. But that was short-lived joy for DC as Warner ran amok along with Ojha.

Playing in his second match after his return from the West Indies tour, Warner waded into the Chargers attack straightaway.

The left-hander swung medium pacer TP Sudhindra, who was one of the many changes that team made again, to square-leg for six and repeated that stroke in the next over by tonking young Ashish Reddy twice in the same region.

He carted seven sixes in all. DD reached 50 off 5.2 overs with Warner's contribution being 41.

Warner brought up his 50 off 26 balls (7x4, 3x6). After playing second fiddle to Warner, Ojha opened up with two straight driven sixes off Dhawan and Delhi galloped to 112 by the 10 over.

The inexperienced DC attack, sans injured Dale Steyn, wilted under pressure to surrender meekly.

Earlier, skipper Kumar Sangakkara took a gamble and opted to bat as he not sure of the wicket. But it clicked to a great extent.

There were cheers for the home side because of a rollicking 126-run stand off 70 balls between Dhawan and White. Daniel Harris was Morne Morkel's 21st wicket in IPL-5. Sangakkara followed Harris in the next over by pulling Varun Aaron to short mid-wicket fielder's hands.

However, after that it was Dhawan-White show. Dhawan was in attacking mood. The left-hander struck sixes off left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem (2), Andre Russell (who came in place of Ross Taylor), Irfan Pathan and Morkel.

It was same with White. The big-hitting Aussie began strongly with two fours off Pathan, then launched into attack. He even played a 'Dilscoop' off Nadeem.

For a change, it was Chargers who called the shots and it touched the peak from the 11th to 15th overs when they collected 63 runs.