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'We Could've...' Axar Underlines The Reason Behind DC's Loss To RCB In Bengaluru

Axar led the team in Pant's absence. (X)Axar led the team in Pant's absence. (X)

Following their 47-run defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Match 62 of IPL 2024, a disheartened stand-in captain, Axar Patel, attributed the loss to his team's below-par fielding effort.

The Capitals, led by Axar Patel in the absence of their regular skipper Rishabh Pant, who was suspended for a match, faltered in their pursuit of RCB's total of 188, managing only 140 runs before being bowled out.

The turning point of the match came in the ninth over, bowled by Kuldeep Yadav, where both Axar and Shai Hope missed straightforward catches, much to the frustration of the Chinaman spinner. The misery continued in the tenth over when Tristan Stubbs dropped a simple chance, giving Will Jacks a lifeline.

Delhi's woes compounded when Axar put down another catch at cover, offering Rajat Patidar a second chance at the crease. This marked the third dropped catch in as many overs, severely denting the Capitals' fielding performance. By the end of the 10th over, they had squandered four easy chances, significantly altering the course of the match.

"Dropped catches hurt us. We could have restricted them to 150. Also when you lose four wickets in the powerplay, you are always chasing the game. 160-170 would have been a par score as the pitch was two-paced. Some were skidding, some were holding,"  Axar said in the post-match interview.

The defeat practically extinguished Delhi Capitals' hopes of qualifying for the IPL playoffs. Despite both RCB and DC being tied on 12 points, RCB's superior Net Run Rate of +0.387 compared to DC's dismal -0.482 keeps them in contention for playoff qualification if they win their last game and other results go their way.