IPL 2018, Match 22, DD vs KXIP - Delhi Daredevils Predicted XI

The Delhi Daredevils have lost their plot horribly in the ongoing edition of the IPL. The Daredevilss, after a poor start in the season, had picked up a good win against the Mumbai Indians. However, since their win against the defending champions last week, they have failed to come up with a complete show. They have lost four out of their five games of the season thus far.

This is a worrying concern not only for the Delhi Daredevils fans but also the skipper Gautam Gambhir. Despite having a good lineup on paper, they have failed to get their acts together at crunch times in the game. In the previous two games, they have meekly surrendered by not putting down enough runs on the board.

With this backdrop, things can only get worse for them from hereon. They are set to host the Kings XI Punjab in their next encounter. In the reverse fixture earlier in the season, the KXIP camp had beaten the Daredevils convincingly by 6 wickets riding on the fastest IPL fifty from KL Rahul. And now, the current form of the KXIP camp needs no introduction either.

They have been soaring high on Gayle storms and KL Rahul blitz in the season. To overhaul the KXIP spirit, Delhi needs to come up with something really special. So what combinations do they field against the in-form side?

Here is the Delhi Daredevils predicted XI for the match:

Openers (Gautam Gambhir, Jason Roy)

The opening slot has been a concern for the Delhi camp. They expect their skipper Gautam Gambhir to lead from the front and come up with anchoring knocks. When the two sides had earlier met in the season, Gambhir had done just that. However, he has failed to muster any other fifty in the tournament since then.

Gambhir is likely to open with Jason Roy, the English opener who has largely struggled in the last three games. Roy had announced his arrival in style with a match-winning knock against the Mumbai Indians. Now, he will have to repeat something similar against the Kings, since someone like Colin Munro is warming the bench.

Middle-Order (Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Glenn Maxwell)

The middle-order has been the only positive for the Delhi Daredevils in the season. In the previous game, after the openers had failed to contribute, Shreyas Iyer played a fine counter-attacking knock to finish with a fifty to his name. He is expected to continue his place at number three.

Along with Iyer, the other batsman who scored runs for DD in the previous game was Rishabh Pant. Pant scored a fine 85 to show some serious form. In fact, Pant has been getting starts on most occasions this season. His form seals his spot in the side for sure.

The Australian cricketer, Glenn Maxwell, is a big name in the cricket world. Maxwell will be a key part of the DD plans this season. He is yet to come up with his best performance in the season. In the last game, he had managed to chip in with some overs as well in the powerplay.

All-rounders (Dan Christian, Gurkeerat Mann)

The track in Delhi has traditionally been slightly on the slower side. Hence, it will only make sense if the Delhi camp bring in Dan Christian in the playing eleven at the expense of Chris Morris. Morris has had a terrible outing in the IPL this season.

Furthermore, it will be a prudent call to bring in someone like Gurkeerat Singh Mann or Jayant Yadav in the lineup. They can come in the side at the expense of Vijay Shankar, who has had a poor season thus far. Also, Mann and Yadav can use the long handle in the death overs.

Spinners (Amit Mishra, Shahbaz Nadeem)

Amit Mishra is a veteran campaigner who has tasted a lot of success in Delhi. The Delhi Daredevils would know this fact and hence, they are likely to bring in Amit Mishra for the game. Rahul Tewatia, who has disappointed in the season thus far, could make way for Mishra.

Shahbaz Nadeem, on the other hand, is likely to retain his place in the side. Nadeem has been a key member in the Delhi lineup and he would ideally know what lines to bowl at the Kotla. Nadeem has been on the expensive side of the economy rates this season.

Pace bowlers (Trent Boult, Mohammed Shami)

The pace bowling department will be led by Trent Boult. Boult is one of the few bowlers from the team who has contributed well in every game for the side. His four overs will be critical in the game considering the fact that the KXIP top order is in superlative form.

Mohammed Shami could make a comeback in the game considering the fact that he has a lot of experience playing at the venue. Harshal Patel is the man who will likely be out to accommodate the services of Shami again.

Here’s DD Predicted XI for the game against KXIP

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