It’s time to look at DC 2023 Playing 11 as Delhi IPL Team gears up for another exciting Indian Premier League edition. They failed to go to the playoffs in IPL 2022 after they underwent a lot of changes. However, they have retained their core going into IPL 2023, and in this we’ll look at the strongest Delhi Capitals Playing XI could shape up.
Prithvi Shaw
Prithvi Shaw will have a lot to prove this IPL season. The stylish batter existence has almost been disregarded by the Indian selectors, not giving him a go in any of the white ball teams that have been picked.
David Warner
The Aussie explosive batter is one of the greatest players to ever feature in the league. He has a stellar record in the toughest cricket tournament in the world and his consistency is borderline unbelievable. However, Warner himself admits that he is at the dawn of his career and will therefore look to extract as much joy from playing.
Mitchell Marsh
The second Australian in this batting lineup, Marsh has come of age in T20 cricket. He now understands his role – which is to go after the bowling from the get-go and not bother about losing his wicket while at it. He is excellent against pace and though his spin game can be worked on, he is the “x-factor” that DC needs.
Sarfaraz Khan
Sarfaraz Khan has been a bankable name in the Indian domestic circuit. The 25-year-old has featured in 26 List-A matches and scored 469 runs at a strike rate of 95.91. In the shortest format, he has scored 1071 runs in 84 matches at a strike rate of 132.22.
The ace batter has shown glimpses of brilliance in the T20 tournament and scored 532 runs in 46 matches at a strike rate of 137.82. He can alsi keep wickets in the absence of Rishabh Pant, as he did in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Rovman Powell
The words that come to one’s mind when Rovman Powell is mentioned are “raw power”. The towering Jamaican is built like a unit and a half and is capable of hitting the longest sixes in world cricket. However, it is a widely popular opinion that he lacks the temperament and game awareness that is required for a finisher, and therefore it will be interesting to see how he blossoms under Ricky Ponting and co.
Lalit Yadav
The number six spot might just prove to be a massive junk in the armor of the Delhi Capitals. Although Lalit Yadav has been around for a while, he has failed to grab eyeballs while batting lower down the order. Therefore, it won’t come as a surprise if the Capitals are on the hunt for a lower middle-order batsman.
Axar Patel
Axar Patel has been a proven performer for India in the white-ball circuit. The 28-year-old has featured in 37 T20Is and bagged 34 wickets at an economy of 7.48. On the batting front, he has smashed 171 runs at a strike rate of 132.55.Axar has played crucial knocks slotting in at the lower-middle order and scored 1135 runs at a strike rate of 128.83.
Kuldeep Yadav
The left-arm wrist spinner was simply magnificent for his new franchise. Kuldeep bamboozled batters with his variations and was the brilliant in the middle phases of the innings. He featured in 14 matches and bagged 21 wickets an economy of 8.44.
Kuldeep has also been astonishing in the international arena this calendar year. The ace spinner has played eight ODIs and taken 12 scalps at an economy of 4.95. Also, he made a spectacular comeback to Test cricket, picking up eight wickets in the first game of the recently concluded two-match Test series against Bangladesh.
Khaleel Ahmed
Khaleel Ahmed has been a consistent performer in the domestic circuit. The 25-year-old has featured in 50 List-A matches and bagged 73 wickets at an economy of 5.07. He has fared well in the T20 tournament and picked up 48 wickets in 34 matches at an economy of 8.49.
Delhi Capitals roped in Khaleel at the 2022 mega auction for INR 5.25 crore. The investment bore fruit as the left-arm pacer was quite phenomenal with the ball. He played 10 matches and took 16 wickets at an economy of 8.04.
Anrich Nortje
Anrich Nortje is one of the rare breeds of fast bowlers who have the ability to clock over 150 kmph consistently. The 29-year-old has ripped through batting lineups with his fiery pace and has become an important member of the South African bowling set-up. He has played 29 T20Is and bagged 35 wickets at an economy of 7.11.
Nortje was exceptional for the Delhi franchise in the 2020 and 202, picking up 34 wickets in 24 matches. Courtesy of his stellar showings, DC retained him for the 15th IPL edition. However, the speedster was not at his best with the ball. Though the right-arm fast bowler picked up nine wickets in six games, he leaked runs at an alarming rate of 9.72.
Mukesh Kumar
Mukesh Kumarhas set the Indian domestic circuit ablaze with his breathtaking performances. First-class cricket has been his happy hunting ground where the 29-year-old has picked up 123 wickets in 33 matches at an average of 21.49. He has also fared well in the shortest format, bagging 25 wickets in 23 matches at an economy of 7.20.
Mukesh was quite outstanding in the Ranji Trophy 2021-22 and picked up 20 wickets for Bengal in five matches. The ace pacer also lighted the Irani Cup 2022 with his bowling exploits and bagged five scalps in the game. He continued his good work in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2022 and took nine wickets in six games at an economy of 4.91.