IPL 2021: DC's Anrich Nortje wants to 'implement' last year's IPL performance in upcoming UAE leg

Pacer Anrich Nortje said he wants to "implement" last year's IPL performance in the second leg of IPL 2021 as Delhi Capitals look forward to winning their maiden title in UAE, as DC set to take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad on September 22 when the season resumes.

In 2020, Nortje picked 22 wickets in 16 matches in his first-ever IPL season. He was a vital cog in the team and played an important role as DC reached its maiden IPL final, where it came second-best against Mumbai Indians here last year. 

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In a statement released by DC, the South African bowler said, "It was here where things started to happen for me in the IPL, but I am looking to take it match by match this season. There's a lot coming up, even after the IPL."

"We have to try and remember what we did here the last time we were here and try and implement that again. Hopefully, we can repeat what we did in the UAE the last time we were here," said the 27-year-old.

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League was halted midway due to several COVID-19 cases in bio-bubble when the tournament was underway in India, the base was shifted to UAE and will resume on September 19. 

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"What worked at one place is not going to work at another place so we have to take it game by game. The upcoming games in the UAE are going to be completely different from the games we had earlier in the season," the bowler said. 

"Maybe teams will field different strategies in the second half of the tournament. We have to be switched on now and just be ready," Nortje said.

He feels playing in the IPL before the T20 World Cup in the UAE is certainly going to be a big advantage for all the players.

"It's definitely a massive advantage to play the IPL before the T20 World Cup. We have a chance to acclimatise to the conditions and get first-hand experience of the kind of wickets here in the UAE.

"The sooner we get the information about the kind of wickets here, the better it will be for all of us. I think each team is looking to assess everything as much as possible, but, firstly we have to assess the conditions for the IPL as it certainly is a big tournament in itself and then we will get to the T20 World Cup," he said.