Blazing knocks by Prithvi Shaw and Rishabh Pant helped Team Delhi knock Team Hyderabad out of the Indian T20 League and move one step from the final with a tense two-wicket victory.
AFP/ Noah Saleem
Shaw hit a quickfire 56 while Pant smashed 49 off 21 balls as Delhi chased down their target of 163 in 19.5 overs to win the eliminator in Visakhapatnam.
The left-handed Pant fell in the penultimate over and there was drama in the final six balls with Amit Mishra given out for obstructing the field after running in front of the bowler's throw at the non-striker's end.
Number eight Keemo Paul, who took three wickets in the Hyderabad innings, hit the winning boundary to trigger wild celebrations in the Delhi camp.
Delhi, who notched their first ever IPL playoff victory, will take on defending champions Team Chennai in the second qualifier on Friday.
"I was a bit nervous, but (Ricky) Ponting sir -- head coach -- and Sourav (Ganguly) sir -- team mentor -- believed in me, and I just went out there and played my natural game," said Shaw .
"I think Rishabh Pant just batted beautifully. We will have fun tonight, and then we plan from there. It's a big game (against Chennai), and we are going to prepare hard."
