Mukesh four-for sets up comfortable win as DC close the gap up top

KL Rahul was unavailable when Delhi Capitals (DC) met Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) earlier in IPL 2025. Coming up against LSG for the first time since they parted ways at the end of the previous season, Rahul anchored DC's chase with a half-century on Tuesday night and guided them home along with his captain Axar Patel.

DC closed the gap with table-toppers Gujarat Titans (GT) as a result, with only net run-rate separating the two teams. DC's win was set up by Mukesh Kumar, who claimed IPL career-best figures of 4 for 33 to restrict LSG to 159 for 6 after they were 87 for 0 in the tenth over.

LSG captain Rishabh Pant bizarrely didn't walk out to bat until his team was five down, with just two balls left in their innings. After stepping out to his first ball and missing, he didn't connect with a reverse-ramp next ball, and ended up deflecting the ball back on to the stumps off his pads to fall for a duck.

His opposite number, however, had a more productive outing. After having taken the new ball and bowled four tight overs on the trot, Axar cracked an unbeaten 34 off 20 balls from No. 4.

After being asked to bat, LSG had another strong start, passing fifty for the sixth time in nine innings in the powerplay this season. Aiden Markram scored 30 of the 51 runs LSG scored in the powerplay, hitting two sixes. Mitchell Marsh was happy to ride in Markram's slipstream.

Markram also batted with high intent against spin, swatting Axar down the ground for four, and pulling Vipraj Nigam over midwicket for six. Markram went on to bring up his fifty off 30 balls, but when he tried to clear the bigger boundary on the off side, he holed out to sweeper cover for 52 off 33 balls.

It was Dushmantha Chameera who provided DC with the breakthrough in his first game this season. Axar, meanwhile, had already bowled out by the seventh over, conceding 29 runs in his four overs. It allowed him to backload Kuldeep Yadav's overs. Kuldeep bowled the 11th, 13th, 15th and 17th overs, giving away 33 runs.

After being on 87 for 0 in the tenth over, LSG could manage only 72 off the last ten. Mukesh led DC's remarkable fightback with his hard lengths and reverse-swinging yorkers at the death.

In the 14th over, he coaxed a return catch from Abdul Samad, who was promoted to No. 4, and yorked Marsh while conceding just three runs. Then, in the last over of the innings, Ayush Badoni hit him for three fours in a row, but Mukesh bounced back to bowl both him and Pant, keeping LSG to their lowest total this season.

Mitchell Starc also played his part, having bested Nicholas Pooran with a slower bouncer for 9 off five balls. It was the fifth time in seven innings that Starc had dismissed Pooran in T20 cricket.

As for Pant, he batted at No. 7 for the first time in the IPL since 2016, his debut season, and lasted all of two balls for no runs. Impact Player Badoni's 36 off 21 balls gave LSG's total a modicum of respectability, but it meant that they could not bring in Mayank Yadav during their defence.

IPL owners often summon captains to explain the decisions they make, but it usually happens behind closed doors. Live visuals of the LSG owner giving Rahul a dressing down after Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) mowed down 166 in under ten overs went viral last season. LSG did not retain Rahul after that, and when he ran into them on Tuesday, he extended his fine form for DC with his third half-century this season.

Rahul also ticked off another landmark: he became the fastest to 5000 IPL runs, getting there in his 130th innings. He then sealed the chase with a six in the 18th over.

Opener Abishek Porel, who scored 51 off 36 balls for his first fifty of the season, and Axar, also contributed handsomely with the bat for DC.

After DC had lost Karun Nair early, Rahul steadied the innings along with Porel. He was on 19 off 20 balls at one point, but stepped up a gear when he slog-swept Ravi Bishnoi for six. Rahul went onto bring up his fifty off 40 balls. Axar started in fourth gear, and stayed there, as DC wrapped up the win with eight wickets and 13 balls to spare.