That masterstroke of Hemang Badani which led Delhi Capitals to victory, the match could have slipped due to a delay of a second.

New Delhi: In the Indian Premier League 2026, Delhi Capitals defeated Lucknow Supergiants by 6 wickets in their first match, but this victory was not easy for Delhi. In the match against Lucknow, while chasing the target of only 142 runs, Delhi lost 4 wickets at the score of 26 runs in the power play itself, which worsened its situation, but Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs handled the innings of Delhi and led it to victory.

However, the real mastermind of this victory of Delhi was the team's coach Hemang Badani, one of whose decisions decided the defeat of Lucknow. In fact, when four wickets of Delhi Capitals had fallen, Badani was standing in the dressing room making strategies. The fourth wicket fell in the form of Akshar Patel. After Akshar, David Miller was about to go to bat, but then Hemang Badani came running down from the dressing room to the dugout and stopped Miller. Badani sent Tristan Stubbs to bat in place of Miller.

The match could have slipped due to a delay of a second

Let us tell you that the speed with which Badani came to stop Miller clearly shows that if there had been a delay of even a second, his masterstroke might have failed. It is not that David Miller does not have the ability to win matches. Actually, Badani wanted Miller to handle the team in difficult situations, because if Delhi needed to score runs fast in the last overs, then in such a situation no one could be better than a power hitter like Miller.

At the same time, Tristan Stubbs is a strong middle order player. While chasing the target, Delhi had no shortage of overs. In such a situation, Hemang Badani's thinking was that Stubbs should support Sameer Rizvi. Stubbs did just that. On one hand, Rizvi continued to thrash Lucknow's bowlers, while on the other hand, Stubbs kept the wicket safe. Meanwhile, if Rizvi or either Stubbs was out, then Badani in the form of Miller would have used a lethal weapon. This is the reason why Badani stopped Miller who was sitting padded up.