‘IPL-3 will be most competitive’
New Delhi, Feb. 3: The Delhi Daredevils have been the most consistent franchise in the two editions of the Indian Premier League but are not satisfied after faltering in the semifinals over the last two years.
The GMR-owned franchise stuttered into the last four in 2008 before being walloped by eventual champions Rajasthan Royals by a 105 runs. In 2009, they were the favourites to lift the title in South Africa after qualifying at the top of the table but were blown away by the Deccan Chargers in the semis.
Daredevils’ Australian coach Greg Shipperd believes he has the squad which can take that one step forward and battle for the IPL-III title. "Delhi will be one of the strongest teams in the IPL once again. Some new additions — both Indian and overseas — have added to our strength this season," Shipperd told this newspaper from Melbourne on Wednesday.
"The Daredevils have been a very consistent side. We were bothered by injuries last season but still managed to reach the semifinals as group leaders. It took a Gilly (Adam Gilchrist) special to knock us out," he added.
In the IPL auction recently, the Daredevils bought South African left-arm paceman Wayne Parnell for $610,000 after buying out the contract of Australian legend Glenn McGrath. With the addition of Parnell, the Delhi side now has four left-armers — Dirk Nannes, Ashish Nehra and Pradeep Sangwan being the others — but this doesn’t bother Shipperd, who is also the coach of Victoria.
"I believe our left-armers could be our secret weapon in this tournament. They are all different types of bowlers and Sangwan and Nehra did very well for us in South Africa as well. We have the option of bringing in Aavishkar Salvi or Umesh Yadav to provide some variety," the 53-year-old coach said.
Shipperd expects leg-spinner Amit Mishra to play a big role in IPL-III. "As the tournament is shifting back to India, spinners will definitely come into play. Mishra bowled very well in the first season and with Daniel Vettori missing the early part of the tournament, his performance will be critical.
"Collingwood, (Rajat) Bhatia and (Moises) Henriques could be useful with their medium-pacers in the middle overs."
On the Shiv Sena’s threats against Australians coming for IPL, he said, "I have full confidence in the IPL’s security management and not am bothered by threats. I love coming to India and watching the crowds in Delhi. I am looking forward to this excitement once again."
Finally, on the Daredevils’ major challengers, Shipperd said, "The competition will be very tough this time around.
"All the teams are strong as we saw last year when the bottom two teams from the first edition battled in the final. We can expect plenty of nail-biting finishes this year and luck will play a big part to decide which way the ball rolls for the team."
Devadyuti Das
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