JOIN USDelhi look to keep momentum
After lurching in pitch darkness, Delhi Daredevils have opened up a crevice of hope for themselves. Their six-wicket victory over the defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad have lifted them from the bottom of the standings and kept them in the race. It should amplify Daredevils’ confidence as they gear up to host another lowly placed team, Gujarat Lions, on Thursday.
The victory over Sunrisers, among the favourites this season, produced several positives for Delhi. Their young top-order fired in unison, stand-in-captain Karun Nair regained his touch for the first time since his scintillating triple century against England, and they snapped their five-match losing streak. More so, the victory lifted them two places to sixth place.
For the franchise that has seen more lows than highs in the decade-long tournament, it is now crucial that they capitalise on the breakthrough. Or else, like seasons in the past, they would fizzle out after scattered flashes of brilliance.
It must have relieved the hosts that after folding up for a mere 67 runs during their 10-wicket defeat to Kings XI, their batting order put up a galvanised show to script a successful chase. Nair, Sanju Samson, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer all made useful contributions to keep the momentum intact before Corey Anderson (41 n.o.) and Chris Morris took the side home.
In the absence of an injured Zaheer Khan, Daredevils seamers Kagiso Rabada, Mohammad Shami and Chris Morris erred in length during the powerplay and death overs but seasoned leg-spinner Amit Mishra arrested the flow of runs during the middle overs. In a tight spell, he gave away only two boundaries and picked a wicket, and along with Jayant Yadav, pulled things back for Daredevils. Apart from the lackadaisical fielding, Daredevils’ seam attack too needs to get its act together, especially against the batting-heavy unit of Gujarat Lions.
Lions, undergoing a miserable stretch with six points from 10 games, are packed with the quality of Brendon McCullum, Aaron Finch, captain Suresh Raina, Ishan Kishan, Dwayne Smith and Dinesh Karthik. Their bowling, more often than not, has let them down and following three defeats on trot, they are virtually out of the race for play-offs. The likes of Ravindra Jadeja, and James Faulkner haven’t been able to create much impact for the team which is placed seventh.
They are coming off a close loss to Mumbai Indians in the super over and would be itching to get some wins under their belts. Against the wounded Lions, Delhi cannot afford to compromise on its daredevilry.