IPL 2021: Mayank Agarwal, birthday boy KL Rahul pummel Delhi, stitch 122-run opening stand for Punjab

Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul, the regular opening combination for the Punjab Kings for the last couple of years finally came to the party in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) against the Delhi Capitals. On one of the better pitches at the Wankhede Stadium in this year's IPL, the Kings batsmen took full toll of Capitals' wayward and short-pitched bowling.

Chris Woakes started well but there wasn't much seam movement on offer, which didn't help his cause and the debutant Lukman Meriwala was the one, on whom they both, especially Mayank was severe.

Meriwala's first over yielded 20 runs which rendered the floodgates open and Mayank became impossible to stop. After which, every bowler went for runs. Woakes conceded two boundaries in his next over. The Kings got 59 runs in the powerplay and as usual, Mayank played the aggressor and Rahul was the more sedate one.

However, it didn't have an effect on Mayank who kept making the Delhi bowlers pay. Lalit Yadav, the part-timer conceded two boundaries, however, the game-changing moment came in the 11th over of the innings bowled by Kagiso Rabada.

Not one, not two, three sixes in that over hit by the duo and they accumulated 20 runs off that over. But, the partnership soon came to an end and it was the debutant Meriwala, who provided the breakthrough getting Mayank out for 69 runs off just 36 balls. But, the 122-run opening stand between the duo off just 76 balls gave the Punjab side much-needed boost after they could score just 106 runs in their last game.