Having lost five matches on the trot, the Delhi Capitals is in a grip of confusion and panic as they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in a do or die IPL league fixture at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, here on Thursday.
There is no option to victory for David Warner-led side, as all possibilities to playoffs will mathematically be over if they suffer another defeat.
Speaking ahead of the game, Delhi Capitals’ all-rounder Mitchell Marsh said, “We would certainly like to bat better. We’ve not been able to get off to good starts or we have lost wickets in clumps. We have to string partnerships and we need one player to get a big score. If we can do that, then we can turn it around.”
Nothing has gone well for Delhi Capitals as the team has flopped in all departments. Despite Warner’s three half centuries and one or two good showing,the batsmen have et down the side. The Skipper has scored 228 runs in five games at a strike rate of around 116.
Bowling department, though having some big names has also failed miserably and the irony is that top heavy team managment includes two legeandry former captains Ricky Ponting and Saurav Ganguly.
Asked about his own form with the bat, Marsh said, “I’ve got a lot of confidence in my processes and routines to go out there and play aggressively from ball one. I’ve not been able to execute my plans in the three games that I have played this season. But I know that my process works and therefore it’s about sticking to your process and having good intent. Hopefully, I can start scoring runs.”
The Australian further expressed that the Delhi Capitals are working very hard to turn their fortunes in the TATA IPL 2023, “It’s always difficult when things are not going right for the team. However, the spirits are high in the camp. We are a family at the Delhi Capitals and we care deeply about each other. We are all working extremely hard and hopefully, we can get a win in our next game.”
There is a possibility of rejig at the top of the batting as Prithvi Shaw, has turned outr to be a flop show so far in this season, It remains to be seen whether Rilee Rossouw and Rovman Powell will find a place in playing eleven. Bowlers led by Anrich Nortje and Mustafizur Rahman have failed to deliver.
KKR, on the other hand, despite suffering a defeat at the hands of against Sunrisers Hyderabad at home start with advantage as their skipper Nitish Rana, Venkatesh Iyer middle-order batter Rinku Singh and West Indian power-hitter Andre Russell have been in good form this season Jason Roy may come in place Rahamanullah Gurbaz as an opener. In that case N. Jagadeesan will keep the wickets .
The match between Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders will begin at 7:30 PM IST.