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Xtra Time Web Desk: Punjab Kings star all-rounder Sam Curran smashed the first half-century of IPL 2024 to guide his side to a 4-wicket win over Delhi Capitals in the Northern derby. The Englishman took home the laurels in a match whose build-up was dominated by the return of superstar wicket-keeping batter Rishabh Pant. With this win, PBKS inaugurated their new stadium with a victory, having moved to the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Stadium in Mullanpur from their old home, the PCA Stadium in Mohali.

Scoring 175 runs on Mohali's slow pitch was never easy, especially for a team with experienced spinners like Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel. Kuldeep took 2 wickets, but Axar didn't spend any runs. However, the others couldn't quite hold their own, especially against Sam Curran and Liam Livingstone. This time, Sam took the first half-century of this IPL season. He played a decisive inning of 63 runs off 47 balls. And Livingstone scored 38 runs not out off 21 balls.

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In the past few years, Delhi hasn't found their rhythm. This IPL season's first match was no exception to their slump. David Warner and Mitchell Marsh started well indeed. But scoring on Mohali's pitch without losing wickets was challenging. Marsh scored 20 runs off 12 balls, while Warner scored 29 off 21 balls. Shikhar Dhawan hoped for the best but managed only 33 runs. Axar Patel scored 21 runs off 13 balls. Delhi's batters couldn't maintain regular wickets falling. However, Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batsman Abhishek Porel led the team to a score of 150. He scored 32 runs off just 10 balls. Harshal Patel took 25 runs in the last over, hitting two sixes and three fours. Thanks to Abhishek, Delhi managed to reach 174-9 against Sourav Ganguly's team.

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This match was much more than just the start of this year's IPL for Rishabh Pant. He returned to cricket after 453 days. In December 2022, he had a car accident at the end of the month. After getting fit again, he returned to cricket. When he picked up the bat, the entire gallery held its breath. In his comeback match, Pant scored 18 runs off just 13 balls, hitting two fours. Initially, he seemed a bit shaky, but gradually he returned to his rhythm. However, Harshal Patel's ball sent Johnny Bairstow back to the pavilion, caught by Pant.

Pant seemed pleased with his choice of shot. However, it was only seen as a small battle in the first match. But in this match, Pant showed his brilliance. It was known that he would bat, captain, but it wasn't known if he would keep wickets. In the T20 World Cup in June, if Pant has to enter the team, it won't be enough to just bat; he'll have to keep wickets too, as clarified by the board. So perhaps Pant took on the added responsibility of keeping gloves to further solidify his place. However, winning just this match wasn't enough.