"Till the time Mark Wood plays, he will remain in the Purple Cap race" - Aakash Chopra lauds LSG speedster's spell in IPL 2023 win against DC

Aakash Chopra has lauded Mark Wood for bowling a devastating spell in the Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) IPL 2023 win against the Delhi Capitals (DC).

LSG set a 194-run target for the Capitals after being asked to bat first in Lucknow in the evening game on Saturday, April 1. Wood then registered figures of 5/14 in four overs as the home team restricted David Warner and Co. to 143/9 to register an emphatic 50-run win.

While reviewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra predicted that Mark Wood will be among the top wicket-takers of the tournament, saying:

"Mark my words - till the time Mark Wood plays, he will remain in the Purple Cap race of this tournament. He might not play the entire tournament, but until he plays, he will set the stage on fire."

The former Indian opener pointed out that the Lucknow Super Giants speedster was virtually unplayable, elaborating:

"Mark Wood was absolutely unplayable. He picked up a five-wicket haul. He made them run away by threatening and scaring them. He might emerge as the best fast bowler of this tournament because of the way he bowled."

Wood first castled Prithvi Shaw after the Delhi Capitals had gotten off to a good start. He repeated the dose to Mitchell Marsh off the very next delivery before getting the better of Sarfaraz Khan with a bouncer. He completed his five-wicket haul by dismissing Axar Patel and Chetan Sakariya in the final over.

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"He was on fire" - Aakash Chopra on Mark Wood

The Lucknow Super Giants bought Mark Wood for ₹7.5 crore at the IPL 2022 auction. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra added that Wood bowled a fiery spell in a format that is usually not considered bowler-friendly, stating:

"It is generally said that T20 cricket is not that much for the bowlers but he was on fire - the way he dismissed Prithvi Shaw, Mitchell Marsh and Sarfaraz Khan. Then he came later to bowl the 20th over and picked up two more wickets. He was absolutely sensational."

Speaking about LSG's batting, Chopra pointed out that Kyle Mayers' explosive knock might have created a selection conundrum for the franchise, explaining:

"When LSG were invited to bat first, they scored just 30 runs in the powerplay. But after that, Kyle Mayers went on the attack. He hit seven sixes. Lucknow will now have a dilemma with Kyle Mayers because they will have to make Kyle Mayers sit out once Quinton de Kock is available and it will hurt them while doing that."

Mayers smashed 73 runs off 38 balls, a knock studded with two fours and seven sixes. Khaleel Ahmed dropped an easy catch when he was on 14, and the big-hitting all-rounder made the Capitals pay for the missed opportunity.