Delhi Capitals 166 for 3 (du Plessis 50, Fraser-McGurk 38, Porel 34*, Ansari 3-42) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 163 (Aniket 74, Starc 5-35, Kuldeep 3-22) by seven wickets

Mitchell Starc's T20 best powered Delhi Capitals (DC) to a second straight win in Vizag as Sunrisers Hyderabad's (SRH) all-out approach backfired for the second time in two games.

Faf du Plessis then set the tempo for the chase with a half-century and despite Zeeshan Ansari's three quick wickets on his T20 return after six years, DC's strong 81-run opening stand set up an easy win in 16 overs with seven wickets in hand.

This meant Aniket Verma's blazing 41-ball 74, highlighted by his takedown of Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, was overshadowed as SRH slumped to their second straight loss.

Starc 2-0 Head

Like he did in last year's IPL final, Starc proved menacing, but he was aided along the way. Abhishek Sharma ran himself out in the first over, Ishan Kishan slashed to deep third, and local boy Nitish Reddy heaved a slow offcutter to mid-on.

Head vs Starc was brewing to be a contest within a contest. Head began by hitting him for two back-to-back fours, but after the flurry of wickets, Axar Patel's decision to persist with Starc for a third over paid off when Head's attempted ramp against him found KL Rahul's gloves. SRH were 37 for 4 in the fifth over.

Aniket, Klaasen lead recovery

Aniket, 23, was all of three T20s old coming into this game. But he showed why SRH have so much faith in him. His incredible 41-ball 74 formed the bedrock of the SRH innings. He hit five fours and six sixes in his innings, twinning with Heinrich Klaasen during a 77-run stand off just 40 balls to lift the team after the Starc menace.

Aniket shouldn't have lasted that long, though. In the fourth over, he survived a run-out chance when Tristan Stubbs missed a direct hit at the striker's end. In the sixth, his leading edge off Axar was put down by Abishek Porel circling from extra cover.

Aniket made them pay - well, almost - by hitting Axar for back-to-back sixes in his next over. Klaasen, whose first six was a whip off Starc, wasn't too far behind, but when he was out to Mohit Sharma after being brilliantly caught by Vipraj Nigam running back from point, SRH needed a semblance of stability at 114 for 5 in the 11th over.

Kuldeep shines, Starc finishes it off

SRH's lower order was put to the test, and they were undone by DC's spinners. Kuldeep had Abhinav Manohar slicing one to long-off and Cummins holing out to the lone man at deep midwicket. Aniket then decided to take control, hitting Axar for 4, 6, 6 to start the 16th over. Fraser-McGurk and Axar's athleticism - at deep midwicket and mid-off, respectively - then helped close out the innings as SRH left eight deliveries unused.

Du Plessis sets the tempo

Fraser-McGurk's powerplay salvo set the tempo for DC last year, but he struggled for rhythm for large parts tonight. This was offset by du Plessis' fluency as he raced to a 26-ball half-century during the course of an 81-run opening stand. Du Plessis took a liking to Abhishek early on, and was equally brutal when Pat Cummins erred in length.

Ansari strikes but Porel sees DC through

Ansari, 25, last played a T20 in 2019. But he got a second wind when he ended up as the highest wicket-taker in the latest UP T20 League. On Sunday, he began with a series of half-trackers but settled in to have du Plessis miscue to long-on and Fraser-McGurk chip one back on either side of a sequence of 4, 6, 6.

In his first innings for DC, Rahul thrilled briefly when he got stuck into Mohammed Shami, muscling him over deep midwicket for a six and then launching him up and over the infield for a four. Rahul became Ansari's third wicket when he was bowled around his legs. Porel and Stubbs put together 51 off just 28 balls to see DC home without further alarms.