Delhi paid the price for taking Shoaib lightly

Counter View : Ravi Shastri

Kolkata Knight Riders have stolen a march over Delhi Daredevils but it’s going to be a close call for the fourth semi-finalists of the Indian Premier League.

Kolkata have a match ahead against each of the three top teams of the league — Jaipur, Mohali and Chennai. Delhi, in contrast, only need to face Mohali among the biggies.

Delhi also play four of the five left matches at home. Kolkata have three of the five remaining at Eden Gardens. Still the fall from grace has been stunning for Delhi Daredevils.

Initially, they lacked the balance due to a frail middle order and the absence of a spinner. Now when that has been set right, it’s the top order which is wobbly.

Good as Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir are, and also Shikhar Dhawan, they are not structuring their innings properly.

A leaf out of Shaun Marsh’s book, or David Hussey, Shane Watson and even our own Rohit Sharma, can be instructive. They score at a similar clip but are far more solid. Its a case of adapting to the situation.

If Sehwag departs early then Gambhir has to take stock of the fact that he is accomplished enough to score at a fair clip without trying the extraordinary. Discretion after all has always been a better part of valour.

I read with interest when Sehwag quipped that they looked to bat too freely against Shoaib Akhtar and paid the price. So perhaps the fault is identified.

TCM