Ranji Trophy: Delhi in trouble due to exclusion of top fast bowlers, Rana dropped from the team
With injuries to their top five pacers and Indian Premier League star batsman Nitish Rana ruled out, Delhi will start as underdogs in their Ranji Trophy Group B match against mighty Tamil Nadu here on Tuesday. . Tamil Nadu is going down with its strong team. The opening pair of N Jagadeesan and Sai Sudarshan have been in fine form while Baba Aparajith, captain Baba Inderjit apart from all-rounders Vijay Shankar and Washington Sundar anchor the team’s batting line-up.
The biggest problem for Tamil Nadu will probably be adjusting to Delhi’s bitter winter. Delhi are in trouble after losing their lead in the first match against Maharashtra by nine wickets and then against Assam in the second match after scoring more than 400 runs in the first innings. All the first choice fast bowlers of the team have been ruled out of the team due to injury. Mayank Yadav has a hamstring strain while veteran Ishant Sharma also has a side strain.
Navdeep Saini is at the National Cricket Academy following an abdominal muscle strain. The team’s most reliable fast bowler Simarjit Singh will also miss the pacer-friendly conditions due to a heel injury, while last season’s skipper Pradeep Sangwan will also miss out. Sixth pacer Harshit Rana is very young and Delhi’s bowling attack on Tuesday is likely to include left-arm seamer Kuldeep Yadav, besides young pacers Prince Yadav and Divij Mehra.
Delhi coach Abhay Sharma told reporters on the eve of the match, “We do not have our main fast bowlers and that is definitely a problem. But we will try to control the sessions. The youngsters who will get the opportunity should take advantage of it.” The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) and its selection committee, meanwhile, have dropped Kolkata Knight Riders star batsman Rana. Rana has not been able to make any significant contribution in first-class cricket for the last two years.
Many in DDCA believe that Rana is completely focused on playing IPL as he has a multi-crore contract and playing for Delhi is not a priority for him. Questions have also been raised on the Gagan Khoda-led selection committee. “You didn’t organize pre-season camps, didn’t have proper training sessions and there was no preparation for the fast bowlers,” a senior DDCA official told PTI on condition of anonymity. There was no plan or vision and now what was expected to happen without any system is happening. Some of the fast bowlers were unfit before the season and even after they returned. ,
In the event of winning the toss, the Tamil Nadu team would like to take advantage of the clouds in the sky by bowling first. In Delhi’s batting order, only Dhruv Shorey and Himmat have been able to bat firmly so far. While batting at number three, skipper Yash Dhull has failed to play big innings while Anuj Rawat’s technique against the fast bowlers is a question mark.
