Delhi Capitals, another of those eternal bridesmaids. It has been 14 seasons and still counting, the team is yet to win an IPL tournament. This time, they did not even qualify for the playoffs. That must rankle the captain, Rishabh Pant. This is a review of Delhi Capitals in IPL 2022.
Rishabh Pant is young but he already has enormous amount of experience. He has toured most of the countries and is used to handling pressure. The Gabba innings is still fresh in everyone’s memory. It probably will forever, especially, for the 80s and 90s generation who never had the privilege of witnessing the Indian team win a series in Australia. Nonetheless, is he really a good captain? The verdict is still to be delivered.
The most valuable player
It is undoubtedly David Warner. Having been involved in top flight cricket in Pakistan, he was match fit and that showed in his performance. Could he have done more? Most certainly he could have. Especially, the last game against Mumbai Indians which was a must win game for Delhi. He failed in that crucial game but that does not take away the contribution that he made and thereby ensuring that Delhi was always in the running for a spot in the playoffs. He finished the tournament as the top run scorer for Delhi and had a point to prove and that too against his old nemesis, Sunrisers Hyderabad. Warner rose to the occasion quite beautifully.
In that game, he could have easily gone onto a hundred with just 8 runs required of the last over but he insisted that his partner try to score as many as his partner can without worrying about giving Warner the strike. That shows the character of the player. Any team would like to have such a player in their squad.
The mismatch at the top
It must be said that Delhi struggled because Covid struck at the most inopportune moment. It rendered Prithvi Shaw unavailable and broke a successful combination with Warner at the top. The team definitely missed the belligerence of Shaw at the top. It forced them to pair Bharat and Sarfaraz Khan with Warner. It did not have the desired result. Both of them, not being natural openers, strived when given a chance but weren’t successful. Having said that, Shaw is also to be blamed because whenever he got off to a blazing start, he never made the opposition pay. He got out rather quickly thereby leaving the rest too much to do. Few more overs of Shaw, Delhi could have won a few more games and thereby could have ensured a place in the playoffs well before other teams.
The lowest point of the season
No, not the fact that Delhi failed to qualify but it rather is something off the field when Pant directed the batters to come off the field against Rajasthan Royals. With 36 needed of the last over, Powell had hit the first three of sixes. That was when the Delhi dugout protested that the previous delivery was a no-ball because of height. The umpire quite rightly refused and a frustrated captain, directed his players to leave the field. Praveen Amre, the batting coach too rushed to the field to talk or rather fight with the umpires. None of these made for good television viewing. Quite rightly, Amre & Pant received punishments though not as severe as their action demanded.
Kuldeep Yadav shone brightly
Kuldeep Yadav was the pick of the bowlers. With 21 wickets, he finished the season as the 5th best bowler among all the teams. His performance was so good that it earned a recall into the Indian team. Just like Warner, he saved his best for his former franchise KKR which benched him for most of the games last year. Kuldeep was all praise for the management of the new team for trusting him and his abilities. If Kuldeep has regained his confidence and his spinning ability, Indian team will only have to thank Delhi Capitals for that. Being a left arm wrist spinner, a rarity in cricket, he will provide that distinct advantage to the Indian team.
Pant was not clear of his role
Rishabh Pant probably should not have been the captain. He is too young and slightly not mature enough to handle a team at the moment. Even while he is playing for India, he needs to be constantly reminded not to throw his wicket away. This season in the IPL wasn’t different for him. He seems to be confused always, whether to play his natural game and go after the bowling right from the start or hang in there and guide the lower order. In the process, he does neither and gets out just when he is supposed to take charge and propel the score to a bigger total.
Now that he is the vice-captain for India, when Rohit and Rahul are not around, this captaincy tenure has perhaps given the selectors much food for thought. It has made them think whether Pant can be trusted with the captaincy. From that aspect, Delhi may have done a great disservice to Pant but has helped the Indian team enormously.
Conclusion to review of Delhi Capitals in IPL 2022
Delhi Capitals, with a mixture of excellent hitters in Warner, Shaw, Pant, Patel & Shardul and the bowling of Nortje, Kuldeep backed by a coach, Ricky Ponting whom Nasser Hussain claims is the greatest mind in the game, was expected to if not win the tournament itself, to reach the qualifier quite easily. That they failed to do so, will rankle them for sometime. Where do they go from here? Well, they can rethink Pant as the captain and perhaps make Warner the captain. Allow Pant to come down the order and be the finisher that he is capable of. Tell Shaw in no uncertain terms that cameos are all well and good but are not enough. If possible, trade for one fast bowler. They have the resources to win the IPL but the execution is missing.
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