Sourav Ganguly feels the Delhi Daredevils are one of the weaker sides in IPL 2017

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly said that the Delhi Daredevils are one of the weaker sides in this year’s IPL, which begins on April 5.

The Daredevils have been considered the biggest underachievers in the T20 tournament. Their woes continue this season as major players from their side will be missing. South African wicket-keeper batsman Quinton de Kock was earlier ruled out of the IPL following a fractured finger. De Kock picked up the injury during the Wellington test against New Zealand earlier this year.

Sourav Ganguly was all praises for young Quinton de Kock and hence mentioned that his absence from the Daredevils squad will be crucial. “I felt Delhi Daredevils have always been on the weaker side for the last three or four years. Their selections haven’t been the best and Quinton de Kock was so important for them last season,” Ganguly was quoted as saying to India Today.

“He played outstandingly, he was the best batsman at the top and they will miss him more than they miss JP Duminy in these conditions,” he added.

JP Duminy, who had captained the Daredevils side for some time, has chosen to sit out of the 2017 edition of the IPL citing personal reasons. Moreover, Sri Lankan all-rounder Angelo Mathews will be unable to play for a major part of the tournament due to a hamstring injury.

Youngster Shreyas Iyer, who had been called up to the Indian test team recently as an emergency replacement for Virat Kohli, has been down with chickenpox. Iyer will, therefore, have to wait for another week before he can don the Daredevils jersey and come out onto the field.

“I honestly feel Delhi is a bit weak on the batting front and they will have to fight hard once again in this competition. For the last two seasons they finished right down at the bottom of the table and it was because of the selections they have made on the auction table. For me, they are probably one of the weaker sides in the competition,” Ganguly said.

A depleted side, the Delhi Daredevils will already be under considerable pressure going into the IPL this year. The team has failed to make it into the qualifiers for the last four editions of the tournament and will look to turn things around this year.

The Daredevils will face the Royal Challengers Bangalore for their first game of the season on Saturday at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.