DD official feels absence of Quinton de Kock will be a huge blow for the franchise

Delhi Daredevils has arguably been the unluckiest IPL team over the past 9 years and their worries don’t seem to relent even ahead of the 10th season. After JP Duminy was ruled out of the tournament due to personal reasons, wicket-keeper batsman Quinton de Kock will also miss IPL 10 after sustaining a finger injury. During an interaction with Cricketnext, a DD official said that missing the services of de Kock will be a huge blow for them.

Despite having a strong team in all of the past 9 editions, Delhi has failed to get as a unit at crucial junctures of the tournament which has hurt them badly. Duminy and De Kock has been exceptional limited overs batsman for South Africa and has made a name for themselves in the domestic T20 league across the globe so their absence will be a major worry for the DD camp.

“We still don’t have official confirmation and are trying to understand the scenario. But if he does miss out due to the finger injury, it will be huge without doubt. He was one of our best batsmen in the last edition with 445 runs in 13 games. With him around, one of the opening slots is sorted. Also, he brings in a lot of experience having played over the years and that is a huge factor when you are playing a tournament like the IPL,” the Daredevils official was quoted as saying by Cricket Next.

Proteas team manager Dr Mohammed Moosajee has warned de Kock of playing in the IPL which might aggravate his injury and might force him to miss the ICC Champions Trophy in June. “We will make a late call on his availability for the match on Friday after he undergoes a fitness test with protective strapping to see if he will be able to bat or keep wicket,” Mosajee said in the statement released by CSA.

“Either way, he is going to need a protected period of recovery which will take between 4-6 weeks. In the long-term, there is every likelihood of him missing out on the IPL because of the expected recovery time.

“Being a wicket-keeper, every time he catches the ball there is strain on the finger and it makes it difficult to allow for sufficient time to recover. If he doesn’t have the 4-6 weeks’ recovery time, further activity could aggravate the injury and it could even jeopardise his participation in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy and the full tour to England,” he further added.

Daredevils, on the other hand, is trying to fit De Kock into the XI purely as a batsman if there is a possibility.