Delhi Daredevils has regained its lucky charm, T.A. Sekar.
With Sekar as the mentor, the team had finished fourth and third in the first two editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL). After ending up with the wooden spoon last year, Daredevils has again sought the help of this professional to revive its fortune in the fifth edition of the event.
Sekar started off with elevating assistant coach Eric Simons as the head coach of Daredevils and giving more freedom to captain Virender Sehwag.
Sekar's idea was simple – “it is the coach and the captain who run the team, so they should get the liberty to do it.”
Lacking in experience
The main idea was to strike the right balance in the side, which lacked experience. The team had to bolster the middle-order batting which did not have the required depth and firepower.
The inclusion of Englishman Kevin Pietersen and New Zealander Ross Taylor enhanced the ‘awe quotient' of the Daredevils' batting-order, while the induction of the great Sri Lankan finisher Mahela Jayawardene gave it more solidity. David Warner, who has grown in stature, was already there to provide strength.
“The entry of Warner and the exit of Pietersen coincide. So, we have the same balance in the batting throughout the tournament,” said Sekar.
Sehwag dictated the team composition as far as hiring of foreign players was concerned.
Valuable inputs
Apart from the reputation of these batsmen, he was assured to know that in crucial situations he would be able to seek valuable inputs from the players who had the experience of leading their countries.
“I am happy to play with other captains. Their advice will be of great help,” said Sehwag.
Daredevils, which will play some of its initial matches without its star willowers, has some utility batsmen – Venugopala Rao, Robin Bist, Naman Ojha, Aaron Finch, Glenn Maxwell – who can shoulder the responsibility and deliver the goods.
Decent medium-pacers
Daredevils' bowling is loaded with some decent medium-pacers. Morne Morkel, Umesh Yadav, Irfan Pathan, Varun Aaron, Ajit Agarkar and Avishkar Salvi have already proved themselves at some level or the other and will be raring to go. Aaron, recovering from an injury, will be joining the side at a later stage, though.
Weak link
The spin department is the weak-link for the side. Though Simons acknowledges the concern, he also expresses confidence about the “surprise factor” associated with the youngsters.
South African Roelof van der Merwe, a Twenty20 specialist, will be the lead spinner, while Shahbaz Nadeem, Sunny Gupta, Vikas Mishra, all-rounders Yogesh Nagar and Pawan Negi will revolve around him.
Part-time off-spinners like Sehwag and Pietersen will also contribute their bit whenever the team needs their service.
Sekar gives a simple example to back the low-profile spinners.
“Someone like Suresh Raina is not a great spinner at any level. But (M.S.) Dhoni gives him the ball in crucial situations and Raina delivers. It is important to have the variety.”
With the available resources, Daredevils, which missed out on a semifinal berth in 2010 by a whisker before hitting rock bottom the following year, will seek to redeem its pride when it starts its campaign this season with an away match against the Kolkata Knight Riders on April 5.
The squad:
Virender Sehwag (captain), David Warner, Mahela Jayawardene, Ross Taylor, Kevin Pietersen, K. Venugopala Rao, Aaron Finch, Unmukt Chand, Irfan Pathan, Morne Morkel, Roelof van der Merwe, Naman Ojha, Ajit Agarkar, Andre Russell, Yogesh Nagar, Doug Bracewell.
Umesh Yadav, Punit Bisht, Robin Bist, Avishkar Salvi, Shahbaz Nadeem, Sunny Gupta, Varun Aaron, Prashant Naik, Vikas Mishra, Zafir Patel, Kuldeep Raval, Manpreet Juneja, Glenn Maxwell, Gulam Bodi, Pawan Negi and Tejaswi Yadav.
Coach: Eric Simons.
