Will DC finally break its three-match losing streak at home and improve catching efficiency?
New Delhi, May 5
Delhi Capitals will be aiming to end their poor run at home this season as they take on Chennai Super Kings at Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday.
The Capitals, upbeat after a win over the Rajasthan Royals away from home, take on CSK, who are also fresh and confident after a dominant win over arch-rivals Mumbai Indians (MI). Both sides are pretty much in playoff contention at this point, and a win for either one of these sides will strengthen their fight for the top four.
DC have had a horror run at Arun Jaitley so far. After starting off with a win over Mumbai Indians (MI), DC's promising campaign took a turn for worse with a shocker one-run loss to Gujarat Titans (GT), during which David Miller denied a single with two runs needed in two while chasing 211 runs, a loss to Punjab Kings (PBKS) which saw Shreyas Iyer led side chase a record-breaking 265 runs despite KL Rahul's majestic 152* and a nine-wicket loss to defending Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), which saw DC skittled out for 75 runs and be at 13/6 at the end of the powerplay.
After this match against CSK, they still have matches against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) on May 8 and 17 to make amends for recent poor performances at home. But for this, they will have to improve their catching efficiency.
The Capitals have dropped 16 catches so far in the tournament, and their catching efficiency at 65.2 per cent is the worst among all teams. DC will have to make sure that this alarming stat witnesses some improvement if they are to reach the playoffs.
Delhi Capitals Squad: KL Rahul(w), Pathum Nissanka, Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel(c), Ashutosh Sharma, Kyle Jamieson, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, David Miller, Karun Nair, Dushmantha Chameera, Lungi Ngidi, Mukesh Kumar, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Prithvi Shaw, Auqib Nabi Dar, Rehan Ahmed, Tripurana Vijay, Abishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, Vipraj Nigam, Madhav Tiwari Chennai Super Kings Squad: Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Prashant Veer, Shreyas Gopal, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Mukesh Choudhary, Kartik Sharma, MS Dhoni, Akeal Hosein, Matt Henry, Sarfaraz Khan, Matthew Short, Rahul Chahar, Spencer Johnson, Akash Madhwal, Aman Khan, Gurjapneet Singh, Zakary Foulkes.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Honestly, DC's home record this season is shocking. Beating MI in first game then losing to GT, PBKS, and RCB by huge margins! The crowd at Kotla deserves better. Hope they can turn it around against CSK, who are always dangerous with Sanju and Ruturaj opening.
I don't understand why DC persists with Starc and Jamieson when they're leaking runs. And that catching stat is embarrassing. Let's be honest, they won't make playoffs with 65% catch rate. CSK will feast on these dropped chances tomorrow. 😤
As a DC fan, I'm still hopeful. They showed grit against RR away. The squad has depth - Miller, Stubbs, Axar can all win matches. But fielding needs urgent attention. Maybe they should bring in someone like Prithvi Shaw for his attacking intent? 🤔
This is a must-win for both teams. CSK are looking dangerous after that MI thrashing. But DC at home should not be underestimated - they have the firepower to post 200+. The key will be how they field. Drop catches against Dhoni and you're done for! 🏏
I think DC's real problem is bowling depth, not just catching. Starc and Jamieson are expensive, Natarajan inconsistent. Without Kuldeep's wickets, they'd be even worse. But credit where due - that win over RR was impressive. Let's see if they can build momentum at home. Fingers crossed! 🤞
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