Delhi Capitals Team Preview - Records, Journey, IPL 2021 Squad & Schedule

Delhi Capitals rebranded their franchise in 2018 and since then they have been the most revamped team in the IPL. DC finished third in the 2019 season and finally managed to reach the IPL finals after 12 years in the 2020 edition. 

Shreyas Iyer, the skipper of DC, suffered a shoulder injury during the ODI series against England and is out of IPL 2021 for the time being. The Delhi franchise hasn’t yet named a replacement for him but announced their new captain - Rishabh Pant. 

With the likes of Rishabh Pant, Steven Smith, Kagiso Rabada, Shikhar Dhawan, Shimron Hetmeyer in the team, Delhi is certainly the looking favorites to lift the IPL trophy this year.

Coached by Ricky Ponting, Delhi Capitals have spent wisely and has the required balance in the squad to win the tournament.

Delhi Capitals Squad for IPL 2021

• Batsmen: Ajinkya Rahane, Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shimron Hetmeyer, Steve Smith 
• Wicket-keepers: Rishabh Pant (Captain), Sam Billings, Vishnu Vinod 
• Bowlers: Avesh Khan, Ishant Sharma, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Praveen Dubey, Amit Mishra, Umesh Yadav, Lukman Meriwala, M Siddharth
• All-Rounders: Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Chris Woakes, Marcus Stoinis, Tom Curran, Ripal Patel 

IPL Records

• DC holds the record for the highest successful run chase in a home match. They achieved this feat after chasing 208 against Gujarat Lions in IPL 2017. They finished the game in the 18th over and won by 7 wickets.
• DC also has the record for the lowest total in a home match. In the 2017 edition only, they were bundled for mere 66 runs by Mumbai Indians. 
• Ajinkya Rahane is the highest run-scorer in the current squad, with 3,933 runs in 149 IPL matches. He averages 31.71 and has a strike rate of 121.38 in the IPL.
• Amit Mishra is the highest wicket-taker in the team with 160 wickets in 150 matches. He has an economy of 7.34, averaging 24.19 in IPL.  

IPL Journey Of Delhi Capitals

• 2008: Won 7 and Lost 7 matches. Finished 4th after getting knocked out in the semi-finals.
• 2009: Won 10 matches and lost 5. Were defeated in the semi-finals and finished 3rd in the league standings.
• 2010: Won 7 and Lost 7 matches. Failed to reach the semis and finished 5th.
• 2011: Won 4 and lost 9 matches. Finished last among 10 teams. 
• 2012: Reached Playoffs. Won 11 and lost 7 matches. They finished 3rd after getting eliminated in the playoffs.
• 2013: A string of bad seasons started from this edition for DC. They won 3 matches and lost 13 in this edition, finishing 9th in the league standings.
• 2014: DC managed to win only 2 matches in this season. Finished 8th after losing 12 matches.
• 2015: Won 5 matches and lost 9. Finished on the 7th spot. 
• 2016: Won 7 and lost 7 matches. Finished 6th in the league standings.
• 2017: Won 6 and lost 8 matches. Finished 6th again. 
• 2018: Won 5 and lost 9 matches. Finished last for the fourth time in the IPL.
• 2019: This time, they rebranded their team, from Delhi Daredevils to Delhi Capitals which worked in their fortune. DC finished 3rd after reaching the playoffs. They won 10 matches and lost 6 matches in this edition of IPL.  
• 2020: Last season was the best for Delhi Capitals as they ultimately reached the IPL finals for the first time. They won 9 and lost 8 matches, and finished 2nd after getting defeated by the Mumbai Indians in the finals.

Overall Record Of Delhi Capitals in IPL

• Matches Played: 194
• Wins: 84
• Losses: 105
• No Result: 2
• Win Rate: 44.53%

Without a doubt Delhi Capitals’ strength this season would be their fast-bowling department. They have the fiercest bowling department among all teams in IPL 2021. The pace bowling attack is led by South Africa's Kagiso Rabada, who won the purple cap in 2020, and his partner Anrich Nortje who was in a good form in UAE. They’re backed by ace Indian bowlers Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav and Englishmen Chris Woakes and Tom Curran. Marcus Stoinis and Avesh Khan also hold the capability to trouble any team with their pace bowling. DC has picked a promising Indian Youngster Lukman Meriwala who looks set to make his IPL debut this season.  

Their weakness in this edition could be the lack of Indian wicketkeeping options as a backup for Rishabh Pant, who would be leading the side but if he gets injured, they’ll have to replace him with Sam Billings. Replacing an Indian player with an overseas player is a headache since if Billings comes in for Pant, a foreign player loses his spot in the playing XI. 

This season of IPL presents a great opportunity in front of Prithvi Shaw & Ajinkya Rahane to prove themselves worthy of this format after not being able to leave a mark in the 2020 season. They will surely be eyeing a spot for the Sri Lanka tour or Asia Cup T20 and performing in IPL will surely make them knock the selectors' door.

A threat could be the lack of experience in the spin back up department. While Ashwin & Mishra have proved their worth in IPL, they have also missed matches for DC in the last season due to injuries. If this happens again, the responsibility would fall on Axar Patel who despite being in good form would be needing support from the other end as well. 

Schedule Of Delhi Capiatls In IPL 2021

• 10th April: vs Chennai Super Kings at Mumbai
• 15th April: vs Rajasthan Royals at Mumbai
• 18th April: vs Punjab Kings at Mumbai
• 20th April: vs Mumbai Indians at Chennai
• 25th April: vs Sunrisers Hyderabad at Chennai
• 27th April: vs Royal Challengers Bangalore at Ahmedabad
• 29th April: vs Kolkata Knight Riders at Ahmedabad
• 2nd May: vs Punjab Kings at Ahmedabad
• 8th May: vs Kolkata Knight Riders at Ahmedabad (at 4 PM)
• 11th May: vs Rajasthan Royals at Kolkata 
• 14th May: vs Royal Challengers Bangalore at Kolkata 
• 17th May: vs Sunrisers Hyderabad at Kolkata 
• 21st May: vs Chennai Super Kings at Kolkata 
• 23rd May: vs Mumbai Indians at Kolkata (at 4 PM)

Also Read - Chennai Super Kings Team Preview - Records, Journey, IPL 2021 Squad & Schedule