In a match that was tipped at the start of the race to identify the final qualifier for the knockout stage, Sourav Ganguly, the Knight Riders' captain won the toss and opted to bat first.
The Knight Riders made two changes to the team that took on the Deccan Chargers; left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla was brought in at the expense of Murali Kartik in a case of like-for-like, while the 'Rawalpindi Express' Shoaib Akhtar came in at the expense of his Pakistan compatriot Umar Gul.
The same pair that walked out to open the innings in the Knight Riders' last game walked out to face McGrath and Co. yet again. The solid Aakash Chopra, and the elegant Salman Butt started off cautiously and could only manage 28 runs in the first five overs. Rookie left-arm seamer Pradeep Sangwan started off the last over before the fielding restrictions would elapse, and although he conceded a couple of wides in that over, managed to pick the wicket of Chopra (13).
Knight Riders' captain Sourav Ganguly walked in at the fall of the first wicket, and took full toll of a 'free hit' delivery from Pradeep Sangwan, but was gone a couple of deliveries later when he tried to pull a short delivery, but played a little too early and saw the ball crash into his leg stump after brushing his thigh pad on the way (Knight Riders 47 for 2).
David Hussey, the most capped Twenty20 player in the Knight Riders' ranks after the departure of Brad Hodge, walked out to bat with more than thirteen overs remaining, and he took the task of batting through the innings - he went about his job of scoring runs in a rather silent manner, preferring to take singles and twos, letting the elegant Salman Butt do all the hitting. Timing the ball well and finding the gaps - traits special to left hand batsmen - Salman Butt top scored for the Knight Riders with a 44-ball 48, and would dominate his association with David Hussey. Butt was dismissed in the fourteenth over, trying to take on Yo Mahesh.
Hussey continued rotating the strike and made sure that the scoreboard was never stuck, he only managed two boundaries in his innings - he hit Farveez Maharoof and Glenn McGrath each for a six, before being dismissed in the last over of the Knight Riders' innings for a run-a-ball 31.
Tatenda Taibu was intent on playing the sweep shot as often as he could; he managed seven runs before being run out by a good throw from Tillekaratne Dilshan. The Delhi bowlers, including their specialist spinner Amit Mishra, all kept a tight leash on the Knight Riders' batsmen. While Pradeep Sangwan (1 for 29), Yo Mahesh (2 for 34) and Farveez Maharoof (2 for 25) were amongst the wickets, Glenn McGrath (4 overs, 22 runs) and Amit Mishra (3 overs, 13 runs) made sure the pressure was on from their ends. Such was the bowlers' discipline that the Knight Riders only managed three boundaries in their last five overs, and thirteen in the entire match.
The Daredevils, chasing a target of 134, got off to the worst possible start. A roaring Shoaib Akhtar got rid of Daredevils' captain Virender Sehwag with the third fair delivery of the innings and came back to dismiss Gautam Gambhir (10) in his next over.
The rampage didn't stop there; Showy's next over was a double blow for the Daredevils. Bowling at speeds in excess of 145, the Rawalpindi Express got the better of AB deVilliers (7), who miscued a pull and was caught at square leg, and followed it up trapping Manoj Tiwary (9) plumb in front of the stumps. The delivery that got Manoj Tiwary clocked 149.3 kmph on the speed gun, and Tiwary was clearly too late in bringing his ball down - he was dismissed in a similar manner on his ODI debut against Australia; on that occasion, Brett Lee's delivery actually managed to sneak through in the gap between bat and pad and crash into the stumps.
After a short period of calm, it was Ashok Dinda's turn to strike - this time Shikhar Dhawan (7) was the casualty. The southpaw tried to work the ball to the on side, but the ball skidded off the track and with the bat still in the swing, the ball sneaked through and clipped the off stump. The Daredevils were in a spot of bother at 43 for 5, needing yet another 91 runs with more than 12 overs remaining.
Sri Lanka's Tillekaratne Dilshan offered brief resistance with a 19-ball 25, but even though he is one among the busy breed of cricketers, he wasn't quick enough to beat the combined efforts of Laxmi Ratan Shukla (fielding at point) and wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha and was found inches short of his ground. The Delhi Daredevils at this point in time were staring in the eyes of defeat, needing yet another 67 runs from 53 balls, with five wickets in hand.
Ashoke Dinda's brilliance accounted for Farveez Maharoof (10), while Laxmi Ratan Shukla, a surprise choice to bowl the 18th over, needed only five deliveries to wrap up the innings (3 for 6).
The Delhi Daredevils eventually fell short by 23 runs, but the margin could have been much bigger had the Knight Riders taken the chances that came their way. The fielders didn't hit the stumps when Mishra and Maharoof were involved in a mix-up, and Sourav Ganguly didn't hold on to a return catch offered by Maharoof.
The man of the day though was Shoaib Akhtar. On his return to competitive cricket, Shoaib never once bowled slower than 142 kmph, and was the most successful bowler from both teams.
The spectacle of the day, apart from Shoaib Akhtar's trademark celebrations, was when the Knight Riders' captain Sourav Ganguly and franchise owner Shah Rukh Khan embraced the Rawalpindi Express in a tight hug - for those who believe in promoting peace using sport as a medium, here was the perfect shot.
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