There is no better high than getting off the mark with a win in the IPL. It gives the team momentum as they forge ahead with hopes of bagging the title.
LSG got that push from not one, but two players on the night when they faced Delhi Capitals at home.
After being put into bat, LSG lost the early wicket of Captain K L Rahul. But that in no way deterred fellow opener Kyle Mayers who went after the Delhi bowling from the get go.
He scored briskly against the pacers and made most of the reprieve he got when he was dropped by Khaleel Ahmed when on 14.
The Barbadian batter batted aggressively without playing any ugly shots. He was severe on Mukesh Kumar and Axar Patel, clobbering the duo to the boundary and beyond, before bringing up his 50 in 28 balls.
Mayers was eventually bowled by an Axar beauty for 73 off 38 balls -- the highest score by an IPL debutant since 2009. His innings laid the foundation for LSG to post a massive 193 for 6 on the board.
When LSG came to defend the total, one man stood tall.
Englishman Mark Wood bowled with fire and pace to put Delhi on the backfoot with the twin strikes of Prithvi Shaw and Mitch Marsh off consecutive deliveries to arrest the DC momentum. He then took out the in-form Sarfaraz Khan.
DC failed to stitch up any partnerships thereafter, losing wickets at regular intervals, Wood returned to bowl his second spell and took out Axar and Chetan Sakariya to finish with a five wicket haul.
The Mark Wood Show will inspire LSG moving ahead into the tournament.
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