Former Australia battler Tom Moody urged fans and pundits not to expect Prithvi Shaw to hit a 50 or a 100 every time he walks out to bat, saying the Delhi opener is best suited to making an impact at the top with his quick-fire 30s and 40s. Moody’s comments come even as the young opener has found form in IPL 2024 for the Capitals. Prithvi Shaw has scored 151 runs in 4 matches for the Capitals at a strike rate of close to 160 in the new season.
Prithvi Shaw hit a 22-ball 32 for DC against LSG in a record run chase in Lucknow on Friday. DC lost David Warner early in their chase of 168, but Shaw and Jake Fraser-McGurk, who walked into bat at No. 3, added 39 in just 21 balls, keeping the momentum going in the powerplay.
Shaw got out in the 7th over to Ravi Bishnoi, but he made an impact at the top, helping set a platform for what eventually turned out to be the first instance of a team chasing a 160-plus target against LSG in the history of the IPL.
“Yeah, for me, if he can get a 30 or a 40 off 15, 25 balls, he’s done his job. That’s the way the game’s going. I think too often people look at this game and think, oh, well, he hasn’t got a 50 or he hasn’t got a 100,” Tom Moody told Star Sports.
“To me, you know, Shaw’s best role is an impact player. Go in there, go at a strike rate of high hundreds, if not into the 200s, do the damage early because you’re then going to put the opposition on the back foot.
“You’re going to raffle them and we’ve got the cavalry behind to be able to make sure we can take advantage of that. And that’s the way he should be celebrated. You know, he’s got the game to be able to do that. If he’s questioning playing that positive brand, he’s then going to be questioning the way, should I start, should I go, where should I go with my game? So keep doing what you’re doing because, you know, it’s good to see him out there scoring runs,” Moody added, pointing out the firepower in DC’s middle-order after the inclusions of Jake Fraser-McGurk and Tristan Stubbs and the return to form of Rishabh Pant.
