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Delhi Daredevils: Team Profile

    • 51 posts
    April 15, 2014 7:06 AM IST
    Tipped as one of the high-flyers of the previous edition on the back of their impressive run to the semi-final in the 2012 Indian T20 League, Delhi Daredevils crashed badly, enduring an wooden spoon finish with a paltry 3 wins in 16 games. The advent of the new season, a new host, a new captain, a new coach, all springs fresh hope.

    Hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things and no good thing ever dies - Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne in the classic movie The Shawshank Redemption

    With Kevin Pietersen and Gary Kirsten at the helm, Delhi will be hoping to make a lasting impact this year.

    Strengths: A strong, deep batting department, Coach Gary Kirsten.Arguably, Delhi possess a strong batting line up at their disposal. Kevin Pietersen's international career may have been made a scapegoat for the Ashes debacle but nobody can doubt his prowess. Armed with flamboyant stroke-play, KP is still a game-changer. Watch out for his patented flammingo pulls and the switch hits. It will be interesting to view how he handles leadership though, considering his bitter-sweet English captaincy stint.

    Young and wild, Quinton de Kock, has already carved out a niche for himself at the top of the order. Murali Vijay, who is most likely to partner him, is a proven performer in the Indian T20 League and so is the busy Dinesh Karthik. DK, who was the engine-room of Mumbai's middle order, is expected to play a similar role for the Daredevils. The in-form JP Duminy, the jack-in-the-box Ross Taylor, and a fit again Manoj Tiwary et all prop up the batting further with Kiwi all-rounder, Jimmy Neesham, enlisted with the task of throwing the finishing punches. The 23-year-old made quite a splash in the 2013 T20 WC League with his lusty blows, remember?

    Kedhar Jhadav, having signed off the 2013-14 Ranji Trophy season as the top run-getter, was bought back by Delhi by virtue of the right to match card.The spunky keeper-batsman will strive to jostle DK and de Kock for a berth in the XI.

    Gary Kirsten's excellent man management skills and ice-cool demeanour also come as a major plus for the Daredevils.

    Weakness: In stark contrast to their batting depth, Delhi's bowling appears thin. Siddarth Kaul and Rahul Shukla are accurate bowlers but they lack variety as well as international experience. As good a talent Jaydev Unadkat is, he is a death wish or a gasoline tanker. One game he bowls in the right areas but sprays the ball all around the shop in the very next game. The side will also have to grapple with the erratic leggies of Rahul Sharma. Whilst Neesham will have to double up as a bowling finisher, much will hinge upon Mohammed Shami and Shahbaaz Nadeem.

    Opportunities: The build up to the 2014 season has been upbeat right from the auction, where Delhi avoided splurging of money, making smart buys after shouldering arms at the retention table. If the KP-Gary combo clicks, then Delhi could be well be in the hunt for a semi-final berth.

    Threat: Much like the moon, the Daredevils have waxed and waned over the years with booming highs followed by disappointing lows. Inconsistency and wilting under pressure continue to remain the biggest threats for the team.

    Best performance: Delhi enjoyed top of the table finishes in 2009 and 2012, en-route to the semi-final.

    Worst performance: Left languishing at the bottom of the pile, Pietersen-less Delhi hit the nadir in 2013.
    Squad: Mayank Agarwal, JP Duminy, Kedar Jadhav, Milind Kumar, Kevin Pietersen(c), Ross Taylor, Manoj Tiwary, Saurabh Tiwary, Murali Vijay, Jimmy Neesham, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Jayant Yadav, Dinesh Karthik, Quinton de Kock, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Siddarth Kaul, Shahbaz Nadeem, Wayne Parnell, Mohammed Shami, HS Sharath, Rahul Sharma, Rahul Shukla, Jaydev Unadkat.

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