Four problems Delhi Daredevils need to rectify

The Delhi Daredevils are not finding things easy this season and are languishing at the bottom of the table yet again. They have been trying a few things to change their fortunes but nothing is working for them at the moment and it seems as if they need a supernatural push to get things going.Kevin Pietersen has mentioned quite a few times that they are an over or two away from winning matches on the trot. He also went on to add that they were a bit unlucky as results are not going their way at the moment and deserve some luck to kick-start their winning run.Even though they boast a strong batting order and probably the best coach they could get on board - Gary Kirsten, they seem to be lacking plenty. Lets take a look at things which are leading to their downfall and how to rectify it.

#1 Wrong team selection

Ross Taylor! What was he doing on the bench? Now just imagine why on earth you drop a player of such caliber after just a couple of failures. In an attempt to boost the scoring rate at the top, after witnessing that Murali Vijay isn't delivering the best of starts, they gave Taylor's foreign slot to Quinton de Kock.

Initially it appeared that this move was a good one as De Kock registered scores of 40+ twice but since then, numbers gradually declined. He played 7 matches on the trot now and having scored just 153 runs at an average of under 22. That is hardly not enough to keep Taylor on the bench. It is time to give 'Rosco' another 'Go'.

#2 Low batting positions of key batsmen

Getting a good start is very much crucial to keep things moving and that sets the tone for the big hitters coming in at the death. Currently, the Daredevils face a situation where the top and middle order can't establish those so called bases and that forces the current best batsmen of Delhi Daredevils to come in at a stage where the team is only strolling at just about run a ball or slightly better.

If the team is not getting those platforms shouldn't the finisher ensure the team gets something on board to defend before going for the par score. That is the situation JP Duminy is facing at the moment in every match he comes out to bat. It will be unfair if we do not mention the contributions of Kedar Jadhav here.

There is nothing else to be counted as a positive except these two batsmen, always covering up the mistakes of the top order and at an amazing strike rate.

In that sense why not try reshuffling the batting order with Kevin Pietersen to open the innings regularly and have Ross Taylor, JP Duminy at 3 and 4. Dinesh Karthik and Kedhar Jadhav at 5 and 6 can bat sensibly to score runs later on. Perhaps it might be crucial for Kevin to bat against the pacers in the power-play, as he too is failing to produce those blistering knocks which you would normally associate with him.

#3 Lack of 6th bowling option

Batting alone cannot win matches and adding to the worries of Daredevils, the bowlers find themselves very much short on capabilities and performances as they have leaked runs in almost every match. They also don't have the luxury of having another bowling option to turn to when the 4th or 5th bowler go for runs.

In their last match against Royal Challengers Bangalore, they went ahead with Duminy as their 5th bowler while Rahul Shukla, Siddarth Kaul, were the bowlers assisting Mohammed Shami and Imran Tahir. It has to be noted that Shami was always going to be a little expensive even if he misses his mark slightly, courtesy his pace. With Jaydev Unadkat, Rahul Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem on the bench there is no one to be called as a strike bowler or a death over specialist while Wayne Parnell can be decent early on.

The ineffectiveness of Jimmy Neesham has further diluted the attack. The dip in contributions from Unadkat and Nadeem compared to their last season is also hurting them. It is not that these bowlers lack the skill to bowl at this level but the temperament and consistency go missing from time to time. However, including Nadeem and Parnell in the side might be a bit helpful. If the side is not going to give Taylor a game they should try Parnell and Tahir in the same match.

#4 Poor fielding

Having said that there is no bowler who is capable of producing some magic they lack the fielders who can convert those half chances and at-least not to miss sitters coming their way. Kevin Pietersen and JP Duminy are excellent fielders. Murali Vijay is 'okay' in patrolling at long on and long off. Who else is there to stop the batsmen convert those ones to twos?

Dinesh Karthik is a good keeper, but on a comical note he misses those easy chances and hold on to difficult ones. Quinton de Cock took over the gloves from him due to his poor work behind the stumps against Sunrisers Hyderabad, resulting in a lot of extra runs.

You cannot bring an overnight change to this problem but why not try to chase targets which reduces the pressure on fielders a bit. Incidentally, Delhi's two wins this season have come when they chase a target and they have come close once.

But nothing changes the results if the side doesn't believe in itself. Despite the skipper having being a active speaker and a very positive man, the players don't look motivated enough to make it to the finishing line. Getting some wins at the end of season might not only boost the confidence of players for their future commitments but also ruin the parties of some teams. Perhaps, that should be the target the players should work on.