IPL 2021, DC vs CSK: Rishabh Pant explains why he gave the final over to Tom Curran

Rishabh Pant explained why he gave the final over to Tom Curran that led to Delhi Capitals' loss to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 on Sunday.

Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Pant said that he chose Curran for the final over because the English pacer had a great day with the ball but unfortunately, the bowler went for runs, leading to DC's loss at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

CSK needed 13 off the final over and skipper MS Dhoni rolled back in the years to finish it off in style. He struck three boundaries and CSK into their ninth IPL final.

"Obviously it's very disappointing; don't have enough words to describe how we are feeling right now. The only thing we can do is rectify our mistakes and move on to the next one. I thought that Tom bowled beautifully throughout the match, last over unfortunately went for runs.

I thought the bowler who is having a great day, it's better to use him for the last over. I thought the score was decent but they got off to a flier in the powerplay and we didn't get enough wickets and that was the main difference. As a cricketer, we are going to rectify our mistakes, going to learn from it and move on to the next one. Hopefully, we can win and play the final," Pant said after DC's loss on Sunday.

DC still have a shot at the final. They will take on the winner of the Eliminator fixture, which is between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Qualifier 2.

Last season, DC played their maiden IPL final but lost the game to Mumbai Indians (MI), while CSK had not even gone past the group stage.

Reacting to CSK's run in the IPL 2021, Dhoni said it has been a "full team effort."

"It's the full team (effort). It was tough when we didn't qualify last time. Emotions were quite high. Forget what has happened till now, we wanted to make the most of the 3-4 games left towards the end. A lot of our batters made the most of that period which is why I feel we have come back strongly this year. Credit goes to the support staff and everyone in the team. Without their character you can't really come back like this," said Dhoni after CSK's victory on Sunday.

After being asked to bat first, DC put up 172 runs on the board. Prithvi Shaw top-scored with 60 off 34 and his knock included three sixes and seven fours. Pant remained unbeaten on 51 off 35. Shimron Hetymer also played a cameo, scoring a 24-ball 37.

In the second innings, DC started off well by dismissing CSK opener Faf du Plessis in the first over. However, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Robin Uthappa put up 100 runs for the second wicket and brought CSK right back into the game. They scored a fifty each before Dhoni finished off the game with his 6-ball 18.