IPL: How Sameer Rizvi’s six-hitting masterclass flattened Mumbai Indians

On a pitch which was not conducive to slam-bang batting, the 22-year-old made it seem like the 22-yard strip had been switched when he walked into bat at No.4. His treatment of the tall South African fast bowler Corbin Bosch, though, was a testament to his confidence. In the 11th over of the DC innings, Rizvi shifted the momentum easily. Batting on 25 from 23 balls at that point, Rizvi demonstrated his proficiency against fast bowling too.

He had flicked Bosch for a glorious six in a previous over, but more mayhem followed.

Boundaries at will 😏

Glimpses of Sameer Rizvi’s superb power hitting ▶️ https://t.co/0EB3YicdL3#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #DCvMI | @DelhiCapitals pic.twitter.com/7q0dHV8LX8

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Rizvi’s assault

He smashed widish ball through mid-off for a four to begin the assault. In the next delivery, he displayed class and improvisation. Rizvi expected the ball to be short and had lined up to pull it before realising the stroke wasn’t on. In a flash, he angled his bat and ramped it past the wicket keeper for another four. The next two scoring shots would have hurt Bosch’s ego. A mighty slash over deep point for a six, followed by another six over long on. His fearlessness and ability to judge the length quickly, except against Jasprit Bumrah, were impressive.

Going for a six when on 90, with no personal milestone in mind, would have pleased the coaches.

The greats Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav weren’t at their free-flowing best when the Mumbai Indians batted, the former saying the wicket was ‘pretty slow’ at the innings break. Rizvi, promoted to No.4 this season for DC and coming off a match-winning, unbeaten 70 off just 47 balls against Lucknow earlier this week, didn’t slow down once he got going.

Style in abundance 👏

A couple of glorious shots for six from Pathum Nissanka and Sameer Rizvi 💪#DC need 70 runs from 54 deliveries.

Updates ▶️ https://t.co/lufWYIGWql#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #DCvMI | @DelhiCapitals pic.twitter.com/dGDQHKVMSe

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 4, 2026

He scored his fifty from 31 balls, with 26 runs coming from just 8 deliveries after a sedate start. His six-hitting needs special mention. Seventy of his 90 runs came via boundaries. His seven sixes, three more than the combined total of MI batsmen, on what was a slow surface, eventually made it a one-sided match. DC won by six wickets and 11 balls to spare. DC were reduced to 7 for 2 after which Pathum Nissanka steadied the ship. But Rizvi’s blitz made it a stroll for DC. Their bowlers deserve credit for shackling the Mumbai batsmen.

Defanging Mumbai

Defanging the Mumbai Indians’ batting line-up is not for the faint-hearted, even with Hardik Pandya sitting out because of an illness. The Delhi Capitals bowlers were on the money. Not many can match Delhi Capitals’ fast bowler Lungi Ngidi’s slower ball, but Mukesh Kumar produced a wonderful specimen to fox MI’s No.3 Tilak Varma. The ball stopped on Tilak, and Mukesh had a caught-and-bowled victim. Before this, Ryan Rickelton paid the price for trying too hard to whack a length ball into the stands to be caught at mid-off. Two wickets in one over from Mukesh was the ideal start.

At 18 for 2 in the third over, the Mumbai Indians’ two best batsmen – Rohit and Suryakumar – were tasked with the responsibility of rebuilding. But Rohit’s wonderful timing deserted him, and Suryakumar was biding his time on the slow surface.

Run-making was tough with the first six of the innings struck off the last ball of the seventh over, Rohit launching leg-spinner Vipraj Nigam back over his head. But it wasn’t Rohit’s day, as in the very next over, he smashed a wide ball from left-arm spinner Axar Patel to Nitish Rana at cover.

First with the ball, now in the field 👌

🎥 Mukesh Kumar’s brilliantly judged catch in the deep 🫴#MI 117/4 after 15 overs.

Updates ▶️ https://t.co/lufWYIGWql#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #DCvMI | @DelhiCapitals pic.twitter.com/SnSyiaaD8h

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The spinners got the ball to turn. Axar brought himself on in the fourth over, and Nigam bowled the next one. Nigam ripped a delivery past the bat after Suryakumar had swept him for a four to put doubt in the mind of one of the best. There were two fine sixes from Suryakumar, one a trademark sweep by picking the ball outside off stump from Patel and depositing it to the deep fine leg boundary. For the other six, he used his feet to smash Kuldeep Yadav for a straight six into the sightscreen.

That Suryakumar’s fifty took 35 balls told the story of the DC bowlers holding sway over MI batsmen. When Ngidi dismissed Suryakumar in the 16th over, before he could step on the gas, any hopes of MI posting a big target vanished.