IPL 9, Match 23 Preview: Delhi Daredevils looking to keep momentum

The Delhi Daredevils will take on the Gujarat Lions in the 23rd match of the ongoing IPL 9 season. While the Daredevils are clearly on a roll at the moment following an impressive win over the Mumbai Indians, the Gujarat Lions are coming from a win themselves against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Therefore, it will certainly be a feisty encounter as these two mammoth sides take on each other in a head-on collision at the iconic Feroz Shah Kotla.

Team News-

Delhi Daredevils:

As mentioned earlier, the Daredevils are on a roll. Having won three of their last four IPL matches, the youthful batting order gamble seems to be paying off at the moment. What was even more impressive was the fact that Sanju Samson came to the fore with a wonderful half-century, something that proves the responsibility despite the young age of many of the top order batsmen. The average age of the top four in the Daredevils lineup is between 22 and 23.

While there are seemingly no concerns within the settled lineup of the Daredevils, the inclusion of West Indies superstar Carlos Brathwaite remains an unanswered question. The southpaw Pawan Negi has failed to live up to his billing with both bat and ball and DD may well replace him with Shahbaz Nadeem.

Gujarat Lions:

In contrast to the Daredevils, the Gujarat Lions’ form has been somewhat of a mixed bag. A heavy loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad followed up with an impressive win over RCB has seen the Lions maintain momentum for most part of the tournament. With a plethora of all-rounders also plying their trade, the balance seems to be near-perfect.

As far as the spotlight goes, it will be on Australian batsman Aaron Finch. A re-occurrence of the latter’s hamstring injury has put him in a tight spot. While the Lions always have reinforcements waiting in the wings, the outcome of Finch’s fitness remains to be seen. Dale Steyn may make an appearance following a niggle to James Faulkner.

Probable XI-

Delhi Daredevils:

Zaheer Khan (C), Quinton de Kock (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Chris Morris, JP Duminy, Pawan Negi/Shahbaz Nadeem, Amit Mishra, Imran Tahir, Mohammad Shami

Gujarat Lions:

Suresh Raina (C), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Aaron Finch, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishan Kishan, Praveen Kumar, Dale Steyn/James Faulkner, Pravin Tambe, Dhawal Kulkarni

StAttack:

1. The Delhi Daredevils fielded all four overseas players from the same country, a first in IPL history.

2. Dwayne Bravo has bowled out all his four overs in 15 of his last 16 games.

3. Suresh Raina has scored in the 20s on six occasions in his last eight IPL matches.

How does the points table look like? – IPL 9: Points table, Purple Cap, Orange Cap and fixtures after the RPS v SRH match 22