Miller in the eye of the storm again as Delhi Capitals finish on wrong side of history
A single denied, a bumper missed, a throw nailed and suddenly the Gujarat Titans climbed three spots on the leaderboard, leaving the Delhi Capitals to ponder the cruel geometry of a one-run defeat. For South African fans and David Miller personally, the ‘almost’ is a fashion that never quite goes out of style.
Delhi Capitals came into the night as the designated chase masters, having hunted down totals in their last two outings. But Gujarat Titans, bruised by two consecutive losses, weren’t in the mood to be a footnote in another highlight reel. History, after all, was on their side; the Arun Jaitley stadium has long been a happy hunting ground and they have already pocketed three wins from four games against Delhi Capitals on this very turf.
The hosts won the toss and chose to bowl, rather unsurprisingly, trusting their talented overseas roster to chase down whatever the opposition could muster. Mukesh Kumar was expensive to begin with but kept his composure to retaliate in the next over. He pushed a length ball across the left-handed Sai Sudharsan, who picked the wrong delivery to cut and ended up losing his stumps via an inside edge.
Having rediscovered his mojo with a promising start to IPL 2026, Jos Buttler was determined to make up for his lengthy lull. For the rest of the PowerPlay, the only sound you could hear was the loud smack of his trademark scoop shots hitting the advertising boards. He was the aggressor-in-chief, rendering Shubman Gill a mute spectator at the other end as he faced only six balls while Buttler raced to a fifty at a strike rate of over 200. Kuldeep Yadav gatecrashed his party with a short-pitched turner that clattered into the middle-stump, although in Buttler’s defence the ball didn’t quite come onto the bat as envisaged. For the fourth time in IPL history, Kuldeep outsmarted Buttler, with the dismissal against the run of play subjecting the home crowd to shock.
The middle overs were about sustaining the momentum. Gill and Washington Sundar took charge, making sure the run rate didn’t drop. The skipper shifted gears smoothly, raising his fifty in 33 balls and teasing the fielders on the boundary line in the process. He was clinical off his pads, using his magical wrists to flick boundaries through mid-wicket with ease. When the radar shifted to the stumps, Gill unfurled towering sixes that landed over the sight-screen. It is easy to be mesmerized by his silken strokeplay and let the external surroundings recede into a blur. However, Washington Sundar was the antidote making his presence felt. It is scarcely believable that until Wednesday he hadn’t scored a single half-century since his IPL debut in 2017. His maiden effort was full of class and helped push Gujarat Titans past the 200-mark.
On the bowling front, Delhi just couldn’t apply the brakes, save for Lungi Ngidi who employed his variations to maintain a decent economy. Albeit with three men in the attack giving away more than 10 runs an over, and Vipraj Nigam as well as Mukesh conceding 23 in a single over, a tall chase was always on the cards.
Nothing was, although, cast in stone just yet given their skill and smarts batting second. Delhi Capitals’ reply kicked off with the kind of intent that makes a mountain expedition look like a breezy trek. Pathum Nissanka, scoring 41 off 24 balls at a strike rate of 170.83, proved exactly why he’s being preferred over Prithvi Shaw. He has become the anchor and aggregator rolled into one, someone who instead of swinging blindly walks out to lay a stable platform. It was this verve that Sri Lanka rode on during the T20 World Cup, and flash forward, it kept Delhi Capitals’ engine running.
While Nissanka lit the match, KL Rahul was akin to a wildfire spreading over the contest. The venue felt steamier than usual as heat waves seemed to emanate off Rahul’s bat en route to a delightful 92 off 52 balls. But even an experienced titan had shudders running across his spine when a hungry lion roared. Rashid Khan, the apex predator in T20s, bowled 11 balls to the well-set Rahul and conceded only 9 runs. It was a tactical chess match where the Afghan wizard refused to make any wrong moves.
Class written all over it 🫡
Pathum Nissanka 🤝 KL Rahul @DelhiCapitals up and running in the chase 🏃
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— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 8, 2026
After a lean patch spanning two years, Rashid signalled an appreciable return to form. He trapped Nitish Rana in front off his second delivery, and even though the on-field verdict was overturned upon review, he removed the southpaw just two balls later. He continued to create pressure by sending the in-form Sameer Rizvi and Axar to the dugout cheaply. The captain’s exit was paved by a mistimed loft off a googly, with livewire Glenn Phillips turning around and sprinting backwards from mid-on to pluck the ball out of thin air.
With Tristan Stubbs’ run-out at the hands of an alert Sudharsan leaving the scoreboard at 160/5, Delhi Capitals were feeling the pinch. Yet, as long as KL Rahul held fort, they were in with a shout.
The atmosphere in the stadium shifted from electric anticipation to nervous silence when Mohammed Siraj, who had been all over the place, finally found his bearings. He fired in a wide yorker that Rahul reached out for, but he could only manage a slice through to Buttler behind the sticks. His trudge back to the hut at such a pivotal juncture came across as a dagger to Delhi Capitals’ heart.
In came the nearlyman, David Miller. His innings was a warrior’s tale. After hurting his wrist while fielding and being in pain since the very first ball he faced, Miller had to leave the park as their fandom feared the worst. However, with the game on the line, he returned in heroic fashion, soldiering on despite the injury. In the able company of Vipraj, Miller turned a lost cause into a thriller. He dragged the equation from a nigh-impossible 41 off 14 balls down to a manageable 13 off the last over.
As Vipraj smeared the first ball for four, the viewers let out a collective exhale. The equation appeared innocuous, but in this funny old sport, simplicity is often a trap in disguise. Prasidh Krishna, reeling from the earlier onslaught, retained his length and justice at once, inducing a sky-high edge from Vipraj that Gill settled underneath calmly.
Enter Kuldeep, who wisely turned the strike over to the man of the moment. On the fourth ball, Miller reminded the world why he is hailed as ‘Killer Miller.’ He launched a six so huge it transcended the roof and seemed to be heading in the direction of the neighbouring Ambedkar Stadium.
With two balls to go, the script was written expertly by and for Miller, who somehow tore it up himself. On the penultimate delivery, he made a decent connection but refused the single, standing his ground as the spectators gasped in horror. It was a gamble, he didn’t want to leave things to chance, read Kuldeep. Alas, he couldn’t seal the deal on his own either. Krishna served an off-paced bouncer, Miller failed to pull, and they scrambled for the bye. Buttler’s bare-handed underarm flick was on point, catching Kuldeep short. The zing bails glowed red, and Delhi Capitals’ chase-hattrick died by a single, agonising run.
Was it supreme confidence on Miller’s part or a fatal miscalculation? The loyalists will debate that denial of strike long into the summer. For now, Gujarat Titans open their account in IPL 2026 while Delhi Capitals wonder how the topsy-turvy contest slipped through their fingers at the eleventh hour.
For the number junkies, this was the only occasion from 26 instances in the history of the league where a team ended up losing from a position of seeking 2 off 2. It was, nonetheless, heartwarming to watch the dejected Miller receiving consolatory pats from all involved. After all, these are the type of soul-crushing defeats that keep an athlete up at night. The southpaw, much to the Proteas’ chagrin, is no stranger to clashes decided by the barest of margins.
