IPL 2022: DC aims to bounce back against RR

MUMBAI: Delhi Capitals will aim to quickly recover from its loss in the previous match to stay in the IPL play-offs race while Rajasthan Royals will be eager to hold on to its winning momentum when the two teams clash here on Wednesday.

Delhi has lost six of its 11 games and although it is fifth on the points table, it is bunched alongside Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings, who also have 10 points from as many games.

Rajasthan, on the other hand, is sitting on the third spot with 14 points and needs just two wins to be certain of qualification.

Delhi has been one of the most inconsistent teams in the league this season as it has struggled to keep the winning momentum going.

After a morale-boosting win against Sunrisers, it was handed a 91-run thrashing by CSK.

Delhi’s bowling department hasn’t inspired confidence. While Kuldeep Yadav is having a good season, the left-arm spinner has gone for runs aplenty in the previous two games.

The return of pace spearhead Anrich Nortje has also not made much of a difference as the South African hasn’t been able to replicate his fiery performance from the previous seasons.

In the batting department, David Warner has enjoyed a good run but the Australian has got little assistance from his opening partners, who have ranged from Prithvi Shaw to Mandeep Singh to Srikar Bharat.

The biggest downer for Delhi has been Rishabh Pant’s form. He has shown glimpses of his destructive power but the team would want more from its skipper who can single-handedly turn around any game.

Rajasthan has arguably the best bowling side in the competition. With 22 wickets at 14.50, Yuzvendra Chahal leads the bowling charts this season and alongside R Ashwin, Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna, the Rajasthan bowlers have the ability to defend any total.

Given a chance to play after over a month, young Yashasvi Jaiswal shone with a fine half-century against Punjab Kings, providing the otherwise faltering batting department a boost. But going ahead skipper Sanju Samson and Devdutt Padikkal need to shoulder more responsibility.