Delhi Capitals (earlier known as Delhi Daredevils) for the first time in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history reached the playoffs in 2019. But unfortunately, the team could not grab the place in the finale. However, they proved that they have the caliber to lift the trophy. With Ricky Ponting as their coach and youngster Shreyas Iyer as captain, they are favorite to win the IPL 2020 title.
For the IPL 2020 edition, they have got new members in their squad. Ajinkya Rahane and Ravichandra Ashwin are the two Indian experienced players that DC traded from Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab respectively ahead of the tournament. They have also got Chris Woakes and Marcus Stoinis, who were outstanding in the recently concluded ODI series. Further, they also bought Shimron Hetmyer and Alex Carey in IPL 2020 auction. After the inclusion of new members, Delhi Capitals look more balanced team.
So as they head to play their first match of IPL 2020 against Kings XI Punjab on 20 September, here, we have discussed DC’s predicted XI.
Delhi Capitals Predicted XI against KXIP:
Openers: Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan
Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan were the opening partners in the last edition as well. The two attacking batsmen will give the fiery start to the team and are best suited to do the job in the power play.
Shikhar Dhawan was the leading scorer in IPL 2019 and ended the season with 521 runs, including five half-centuries, in 16 matches under his belt. On the other hand, Shaw snared 353 runs in 16 matches at the strike rate of 133.71.
The veteran player Ajinkya Rahane will be the backup opener for Delhi.
Middle-order: Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Shimron Hetmyer
Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer can very well handle the pressure at no.3 position while he is also dominant against spinners. He will be accompanied by two power hitters Rishabh Pant and Shimron Hetmyer no.4 and no.5. These three batters form the crux of DC’s batting.
Pant is likely to be given a wicketkeeper’s role as well.
Allrounder: Marcus Stoinis, Axar Patel
Marcus Stoinis will surely be included in DC’s squad after seeing his performance in the recently concluded limited over series against England. DC will accept him to take charge of the innings and bulldoze the opposition with biggies.
Considering the spin-friendly conditions in the UAE, Axar Patel is most likely to get a nod above Keemo Paul and Daniel Sams as the second all-rounder in the team.
Bowlers: R Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Amit Mishra, Ishant Sharma
Spinners are going to dominate in the much-awaited tournament. So, the experienced off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and Amit Mishra are going to spearhead the bowling attack for Delhi Capitals. For the fast bowling, Kagiso Rabada and Ishant Sharma will be given a place in the XI.
In the spin bowling department, they have also a worthy replacement in the form of Sandeep Lamichchane.