Will Devils dare this timeIJ
Delhi Daredevils have started the new season with truth. First coach Gary Kirsten confessed that he was "caught off-guard" in his maiden stint in the Indian Premier league. Then their newly appointed captain JP Duminy acknowledged that they were "pretty bad" last season and starting afresh puts the team at a "disadvantage" against "well settled" teams.
Denial can be your biggest enemy and that’s where Daredevils suffered last season. They made wholesale changes ahead of 2014 IPl edition but it didn’t bring any change to their fortunes. They again finished at the bottom of the table.
This year also they offloaded 13 players who were part of their disastrous last season where they managed to win only two matches out of 14. But this time they aren’t living in denial. They understand the challenge that lies ahead of them.
Kirsten, who was very successful in his stints with India and South Africa taking them to World No. 1 in Tests and making India the world champions in 2011, couldn’t crack the IPl code last season and would be eager to tick the box this time.
DD owners spent generously at the auctions buying Yuvraj Singh for a whopping Rs16 crore along with Angelo Mathews (7.5 crore), Zaheer Khan (4 crore) and Amit Mishra (3.5 crore) being their most expensive purchases.
Although Yuvraj is a proven match-winner but DD’s Rs16 crore investment seemed more of a publicity requirement than team necessity as the southpaw enjoys massive fan following. Interestingly, Royal Challengers Bangalore spent Rs 14 crore on Yuvraj last year but he only played a supporting role to AB de Villiers, who was the top-scorer for the team. What Yuvraj does this time will have a huge bearing on Daredevils’ fate in the tournament.
DD’s best investment was probably in the wrist spinners - they have three in the squad including a chinaman. While they retained Imran Tahir from last year’s team, they also added Amit Mishra and unknown entity KK Jiyaz to their repertoire. This in addition to Shahbaz Nadeem, their most consistent bowler, and JP Duminy and Yuvraj, who are more than just part-timers.
Wrist spinners are considered wicket-taking bowlers and that’s what required in Twenty20 cricket. Tahir showed his class in the recent World Cup while Mishra has been a consistent wicket-taker in all seven editions. Jiyaz is a gamble but he has variety and a combination of right and left-arm spinners can cause a lot of trouble for the opposition.
Their batting line-up has potential to make any bowling unit look ordinary, however, it all depends on how they apply themselves in the middle. Also, Duminy needs to bat up in the batting order unlike last season when he was kept in the dug out for too long despite being their most successful batsman.