3 reasons why DC are struggling with the bat in IPL 2023
Delhi Capitals recorded their first win of IPL 2023 last night against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The team's bowling unit played a big role in their victory. Ishant Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav and Anrich Nortje's two-wicket hauls helped DC bowl KKR out for just 127 runs.
Any team would accept a 128-run target in IPL 2023. However, the Delhi Capitals almost ended up losing the match. Taking nothing away from the bowling of Nitish Rana, Varun Chakravarthy and Anukul Roy, DC's batting did not execute their plans well, which is why they were down to 111/6 after being 62/1 at one stage.
Had Kolkata Knight Riders dismissed Axar Patel cheaply, they could have even won the match. This was not the first time DC's batting lineup has disappointed the fans in IPL 2023. DC suffered defeats earlier in the season due to their poor batting in other matches as well.
On that note, we will look at three reasons why DC are struggling with the bat in IPL 2023.
#1 Rishabh Pant's absence has hurt DC a lot in IPL 2023
Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant was ruled out of IPL 2023 because of the injuries he suffered in a fatal accident last December. The wicket-keeper batter shouldered the middle-order of the team in the last five seasons.
Pant was DC's first retention ahead of the IPL 2022 Auction, highlighting the big impact he made on the team. Unfortunately, Pant's accident happened after the IPL 2023 Auction. DC had no other option but to sign a replacement from the unsold lot.
At the moment, there is no wicket-keeper batter in India who is close to Rishabh Pant, and choosing a replacement from the unsold list hurt DC's team balance a lot.
#2 Too many changes in first few matches
Delhi Capitals have played six matches in IPL 2023 so far, and the only batters to have been a part of all six games are captain David Warner and opener Prithvi Shaw.
Manish Pandey, Sarfaraz Khan, Rilee Rossouw, Lalit Yadav, Abishek Porel, Aman Hakim Khan, Phil Salt, Rovman Powell, Mitchell Marsh and Yash Dhull have played two to four matches each. Too many changes hurts the team negatively. The players start to feel insecure.
If a team gives up on a player after two or three failures, the team environment is not the best, and the same has reflected on DC's performances on the field.
#3 Wrong batting position for players
Delhi Capitals are yet to figure out their best batting order. Prithvi Shaw and David Warner have opened the innings regularly, but the next batters in the lineup have changed positions.
For example, Rovman Powell scored 134 runs at number six last season at an average of 22.33 and a strike rate of 142.55, but he was used as a number five batter and then a number seven batter this season.
Mitchell Marsh performed brilliantly for Australia as an opener in the ODI series against India, but DC have persisted with Prithvi Shaw and David Warner as openers, sending Marsh at number three. Some fans feel that DC's team management is sending the batters at the wrong positions.