In Int2 DHCZn  = 91.7°, resulting in a short HH contact of 2.23 Å, and this distortion decreases ( increases to 97.9°) in TS3 DHCZn . In contrast, Int1 DHCAl has  = 114.6° (CH = 3.16 Å) and the distortion increases to access TS3 DHCAl ( = 106.9°). Notably, larger spectator ligands (defined as Y, Table ) at the metal promote the ligand-assisted H2 or CH4 loss reactions by increasing the distortion (decreasing ) of the precursor complexes (vide infra).