SRH vs DC: Sunrisers Hyderabad put on a dominant show at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on 21 April 2026, brushing aside Delhi Capitals by 47 runs to seal their third win in a row this IPL season. Abhishek Sharma was the star of the show, smashing an unbeaten 135 off 68 balls, his second IPL ton, to help SRH pile up a massive 242 for 2.
DC never really looked like they were in the chase, eventually finishing on 195 for 9. But while the runs flowed, it was Delhi’s bowling tactics that grabbed the headlines after the game. Former Australian captain Aaron Finch didn't hold back, criticising DC skipper Axar Patel for letting part-time off-spinner Nitish Rana bowl his full four-over quota.
Finch found the move hard to justify, especially since Axar and Kuldeep Yadav, both double T20 World Cup winners and stalwarts of India’s bowling unit, were right there in the XI. For Finch, letting Rana bowl four overs while two world-class spinners took a backseat said a lot about Axar’s mindset as a leader under pressure.
The Australian pointed out that Axar has the skills to hold his own against left-handers, noting his knack for changing angles, varying his pace, and using his height effectively, even when things get tough. According to Finch, those smart adjustments make Axar a real threat even when he’s bowling a defensive line, particularly against a batter as aggressive as Abhishek Sharma.
Abhishek’s knock was built on a clear intent to go hard in the power play, though he had to adjust when the pitch turned out slower than expected. He still managed to power SRH to a score that effectively ended the contest by the halfway mark. With a batter in that kind of form, Finch’s point hits home: turning to a part-timer like Rana instead of trusting your strike bowlers looks more like a lapse in captaincy nerves than a tactical mistake.
Finch was careful to distinguish between a bad day at the office and a lack of intent. He admitted that any bowler can have a rough patch and that nobody bowls 24 perfect balls in a game. What bothered Finch, though, was the idea that Axar seemed to lack the confidence to bowl to left-handers. To Finch, if you’re the captain, you have to lead from the front and take on the tough overs, especially when you are the most qualified bowler in the team to do so.
"It's the responsibility of your captain, your senior player, your retained player, your best bowler, an Indian bowler, he's one of your core bowlers in the Indian cricket team. That's no small bit. He's a double World Cup winner. So the fact that he doesn't trust himself to execute under pressure and to defend himself against any left-handers, as soon as a left-hander walks to the crease, not for me today, thanks. To me, that says more about his attitude towards it than anything else," Finch said.
"He's got a great defensive mindset with the ball in hand, too. He's not somebody that you know. If he's under pressure, he'll float one up in the slot. He defends himself. He changes angles. He uses his range and his height to his advantage as well. So even when you're thinking defensively, that's attacking against Abhishek Sharma when he's in a mood like that. You bowl a couple of decent balls, and you know that something will happen," Finch explained.
"I'm looking at those comments saying, well, hang on, boss, you had the chance as well, but you're not willing to stand up at the moment either. So I'm no issue with mis-execution. A bowler can mis-execute for a game or for a couple of games. If their planning and their preparation and their thought process are right, I've no issues whatsoever with that. Because inevitably, you can't bowl 24 perfect balls. You can't get your decision-making right all the time.”
After the game, Axar Patel admitted his bowlers missed their marks and that dropped catches and poor fielding hurt DC at key moments. That’s an honest take, but it doesn't answer the bigger question Finch raised: did the captain back the right players at the right time? SRH’s win push them further up the table, while DC are left searching for answers regarding their leadership and bowling changes as the tournament nears its business end.
