Live blog - Fraser-McGurk fireworks lift Capitals to victory

Delhi Capitals ended Lucknow Super Giants’ stranglehold on 160-plus chases and lifted themselves off the bottom of the IPL table with a six-wicket win in Lucknow. Kuldeep Yadav provided the inspiration on his return from injury before a sparkling half-century on IPL debut from Australia’s Jake Fraser-McGurk saw them reel in their target with 11 balls to spare.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat, LSG produced a stuttering innings that nevertheless still finished above the 160-mark – from which they had never lost when batting first. KL Rahul gave them a fast start with 39 off 22 before Kuldeep’s ripped out the guts of the top order in the space of his first nine balls. Rahul’s dismissal by Kuldeep left LSG 77 for 5 and their position got worse before it got better.

With the score 94 for 7 after 13 overs, Capitals appeared to be on course for a walkover. But Ayush Badoni’s 31-ball fifty and an unbroken stand of 73 with Arshad Khan – an IPL record for the eighth wicket – at least gave their vaunted spin attack something to bowl at.

Capitals, on a run of four defeats in five, might have wondered if their chance had gone. Prithvi Shaw gave the chase a punchy start to settle some of the nerves and then it was over to Fraser-McGurk, the 22-year-old from Melbourne, to provide the fireworks. His first scoring shot was a wallop for six over deep midwicket and he cleared the ropes four more times to raise his half-century from 31 balls. He and Rishabh Pant both departed after a stand of 77 off 46 but by then Capitals were well on track.

...but it's probably too late. A sliced drive at Naveen ends up in the hands of deep third, Fraser-MCGurk walking off with 55 from 35 from his debut IPL innings. He's the third youngest overseas batter to score a half-century in the competition, and it has gone a long way to making this chase pretty comfortable for DC.

Youngest overseas batters to score a fifty in the IPL:
20y 334d - Sam Curran vs KKR, 2019
21y 129d - Rahmanullah Gurbaz vs RCB, 2023
22y 1d - Jake Fraser-McGurk vs LSG, 2024

Jake Fraser-McGurk is writing himself a slice of IPL history on debut here. Krunal Pandya is cleaned out three times in a row - three brutal hits over the ropes - as Capitals take a grip on this chase. Fraser-McGurk had slowed down against the spinners but thumps his foot on the accelerator again. DC now up to 97% on Forecaster and looking set to break LSG's peerless run when defending totals.

This is the 11th over from Bishnoi to Pant. Capitals are 90 for 2.

Nicholas Pooran fell for a duck today, but he's come up with a fine running, diving catch to take out Prithvi Shaw at a time where he was starting to go big.

Jonty Rhodes, who is potentially the greatest fielder ever, is part of the LSG set-up. And he is asked by the broadcasters which catch is better: Bishnoi's reflex return catch to dismiss Kane Williamson or Pooran's effort today.

Rhodes doesn't give too much away but he notes how when the ball is in the air for a long time - like it was for Pooran - and you have to make choices in that time, how quickly to run, the angles you need to take, the decision to dive - those require a fair bit of steel.

Fraser-McGurk was 16 off 8. From then on he's 3 off 5. Super Giants have adapted quickly to what his strength is and have offered him a new challenge - Bishnoi with his wristspin which can be hard to pick out of the hand and Naveen ul Haq with his slower balls. Does the young Australian have what it takes to adjust?

These are LSG's three overs immediately after the powerplay.

Ravi Bishnoi comes on and immediately shifts the needle LSG's way. The specialist googly bowler unleashes one of his rare legbreaks and that does for Shaw. This one over has lifted his team's chances of victory by 8.29%

Capitals need 105 from 78 balls with eight wickets in hand.

His first scoring shot in the IPL, much like in his international career, is a boundary. It was a four for Australia in ODIs. It's a six here for Delhi Capitals.

His hands and the followthrough are where he gets all his power from. And it's very much visible here as well. Of course none of that would be on show if he also didn't possess a mindset so clear that he keeps going for his shots no matter what. He's been beaten a couple of times but he doesn't care. He knows what he's got and he doesn't let doubt mess with him

He claimed a maiden five-for on his last outing, and Yash Thakur has again provided the breakthrough for LSG. Warner needed help from the physio before the start of the over, having taken a blow on the hand when trying to scoop Naveen, and the same shot does for him against Yash's medium pace. The ball skidding into the body, spun back sharply and broke the bails before Warner could flick it away.

Back-to-back boundaries in the second over, bowled by Naveen-ul-Haq, have got this Capitals chase going. Prithvi Shaw has shown flickers of form in the last few weeks and he could be key for the visitors. He needed some treatement in the first over after taking a blow on the hand but seems to have shaken that off. Given width to cut, he sent his fourth ball to the fence and then crunched the next - one that was much tighter to the stumps - through extra cover.

Warner also found the boundary in the opening exchanges, but wasn't so impressive when attempting to scoop the final ball of Naveen's over and ending up on the floor.

A lofted drive off Mukesh was followed by a cute sweep for four more, as another 13 runs came off the 19th over. Badoni brought up a 31-ball half-century from the final ball, with a single to keep the strike, adding another boundary when he swiped Ishant over the covers. With Arshad hoicking four over backward point, LSG kept the momentum to power past 160. The partnership was eventually worth 73 off 42 balls. But do they have enough after that mid-innings collapse of 5 for 28? ESPNcricinfo's Forecaster doesn't think so.

Forecaster: Delhi Capitals 59%

Suddenly 160 is very much on for LSG. Ayush Badoni had to try to rebuild, taking a brace of fours off Mukesh Kumar in the 15th but running plenty of ones and twos. With the spinners bowled out and Khaleel Ahmed returning for the 18th, Badoni decided it was time to go - the first ball was short and smoked over midwicket for six. Arshad Khan then muscled four more down the ground and was dropped by Prithvi Shaw from the final delivery of the over, which turned out to be the most expensive of the innings, with 15 runs conceded.

No boundaries in almost five overs, and LSG are now six down after the fall of Krunal Pandya off the final ball of the 13th. Kuldeep started the rot with two in two balls and the home side have since lost 5 for 28 during the middle period of their innings. Remember, LSG have never lost when defending a target of 160-plus... but at the moment they are a long way of posting that many.

Forecaster predicted score: 129

Are Capitals on top? They might just be, you know. Kuldeep has his third wicket in nine balls tonight, and this is the big one as far as LSG are concerned. Rahul was batting beautifully on 39 from 21 when he attempted to cut one going across him and feathered an edge behind. It wasn't given on the field but Rishabh Pant quickly reviewed and Rahul is gone. LSG are 80 for 5 after 10, having brought Deepak Hooda in as their Impact Sub.

Forecaster predicted score: 164

Kuldeep Yadav has missed Capitals' last three games through injury, but boy are they glad to have him back tonight. The wristspinner picks up Marcus Stoinis with his third ball, a wrong'un sliced tamely to backward point, and then follows up by removing Nicholas Pooran, LSG's form batter, with one that rips back inside the bat to uproot off stump. Not only has Kuldeep put the brakes on the home side and quietened the crowd, he has also completely nobbled the stump... so the umpires signal for a strategic timeout while that gets fixed!

Rahul takes some criticism for his approach, often seeming over-cautious for such a gifted batter - but he has looked in sparkling touch so far tonight. His first boundary was a flat six off Khaleel flayed over cover and he has just greeted Mukesh Kumar's arrival into the attack for the final over of the powerplay with back-to-back fours, the second a smooth on-the-walk drive through extra cover. With 30 off 14 balls, this is Rahul's joint-best powerplay score for Super Giants.

LSG 57 for 2 after six, ahead of the pace they set against Titans on this ground a five days ago.

Khaleel, bowling his third over of the powerplay, gets a second wicket - Devdutt Padikkal pinned in front of middle and leg for his fifth consecutive single-figure score since joining LSG. Thought about the review but there was much less doubt about this call, and in the end he just heads for the dressing room. Super Giants 42 for 2 in the fifth.

De Kock misses a big swing across the line and up goes the finger! The ball was heading towards leg and de Kock went to the DRS - but ball-tracking had it shaving leg stump, umpire's call, so Rohan Pandit's decision stands. DC needed that after a fast start from the openers. Khaleel with his eighth wicket to go joint fourth on the standings.

No Anrich Nortje in the DC XI today, and this is perhaps why. The South Africa fast man, only recently back from injury, has not been at his best so far this IPL.

Quinton de Kock starts and finishes the opening over from Khaleel Ahmed with a boundary and LSG are on their way. Khaleel has been Capitals' best bowler so far this season but his first ball was short and wide, to be carved away over the leaping gully, and although he straightened up his line in response, de Kock managed a thick inside edge for four more.

KL Rahul has again won the toss and chosen to bat, with LSG looking to bolster their formidable record when defending a target - Karthik Krishnaswamy wrote on the topic after they beat Gujarat Titans last week and that piece is well worth your time now. They will of course be without Mayank Yadav (although he only bowled one over against Titans) after he suffered a side strain, with Arshad Khan coming in. Delhi Capitals have shaken up their selection as they look to get their season back on track: Kuldeep Yadav is the big name back in the side after injury, Mukesh Kumar also returns, while Shai Hope and Jake Fraser-McGurk - the latter on IPL debut - fill two of the overseas slots. That means no Anrich Nortje or Jhye Richardson tonight.