3 Players Delhi Capitals (DC) should release ahead of IPL Auction

There are only three teams that haven’t won the IPL so far. Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) and Delhi Capitals (DC) are the only teams whose trophy cabinets are empty. Among these three, perhaps, Delhi have been the worst side.

They’ve finished with the wooden spoon as many as four times and have made it to the playoffs only on four occasions. One of them was last season. The change in name (from Daredevils to Capitals) worked wonders as they finished third on the points table. They won nine out of the 14 games and were largely consistent throughout the season.

The Delhi Capitals have been busy in the off-season as well. They’ve actively participated in the player’s trade. They have managed to grab Ravichandran Ashwin from KXIP while they traded Sherfane Rutherford and brought in leggie Mayank Markande. Hence, there is a lot of activity going around the squad.

Thus, with the auctions just a little over a month away, here are three players DC should release ahead of the auctions for the 2020 edition of the IPL.

1. Amit Mishra

It may come as a surprise as to why should Delhi release the second-highest wicket-taker in the history of the IPL. But the number of spinners Delhi have got, it makes sense for Amit Mishra to part ways with the franchise.

Ravichandran Ashwin has joined the squad and there is no doubt he will be the premier spinner while there are Axar Patel and Rahul Tewatia who are spin-bowling all-rounders. Mayank Markande has been brought in from the Mumbai Indians (MI) while there is the Nepal star leggie Sandeep Lamichhane as well. Thus, with a plethora of spin options, it’s best for DC to release Mishra.

The Haryana leg-spinner has played 92 games for Delhi and has taken 97 (out of his 157) wickets for them. Hence, it may be a touch hard for the franchise to leave him. But Mishra isn’t the same. He may be a liability on the field and at 36 years of age, he’s not getting any younger.

2. Colin Munro

Colin Munro is one of the only three players to have scored three or more T20I hundreds. He averages almost 31 and has a strike-rate of 160.04 in international T20 cricket. Yet, all the New Zealand dasher has played is 13 IPL games.

These 13 matches have come across three different seasons and for two different teams. In 2016, the left-hander played four games for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) before he was bought by Delhi in 2018. However, the Delhi franchise didn’t give him a long rope either.

Munro played five games in the 2018 season where he scored just 63 runs while he played just four games in 2019, scoring 84 runs. Thus, with the swashbuckling Kiwi player not getting enough chances, it is best for Delhi to let him go. In fact, even in the games that he played, Munro did not get to open the batting. So, it is best for both Munro and DC that he is released.

3. Manjot Kalra

If you remember the 2018 Under-19 World Cup final, you will remember Manjot Kalra. The young left-handed opening batsman climbed to the top of the mountain when he struck a match-winning ton in the final to help India lift the Under-19 title. He scored 252 runs at an average of 84.00 in that tournament.

After his good run, Kalra was picked up by the Delhi franchise for his base price of INR 20 lakhs in the 2018 IPL auctions. But he hasn’t played a single game yet. The promising opening batsman has warmed the benches for two seasons straight.

However, he hasn’t played much cricket apart from that either. He’s been in troubled waters. Kalra was caught for age-fraud earlier this year. He is actually a year elder than what he claimed to be. According to the charge sheet filed against him, Kalra’s original date of birth is January 15th 1998 and not 1999. Hence, he has been banned and thus, DC might most likely release him.