Duminy says entire Delhi team must do better
Skipper defends out-of-form star Yuvraj after 10-wicket defeat to Royal Challengers
The costliest buy in this year’s Indian Premier League auction, Yuvraj Singh has not set the season ablaze the way he was expected to, but his Delhi Daredevils captain J.P. Duminy has backed the star player to come good in the later stages.
Yuvraj, bought for Rs. 16 crore (Dh9.2 million), has scored 124 runs in seven innings at an average of 17.71 with just one half-century to his name. And the all-rounder managed just two off five balls in Delhi’s demoralising 10-wicket defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday night.
But Duminy feels it is not fair to single out any player in the team’s inconsistent run, which has seen them lose four out of their seven games.
“It is easy to criticise him [Yuvraj]. He has not had great opportunities in the matches we have done well and I think he will be the first to admit that he would have loved to contribute. But it is not because of one guy’s performance that we are losing,” said the South African, who has been in decent touch himself, scoring 222 runs at 44.
“He is a massive player for us and I have all the confidence that he is going to come good for us in the later part of the tournament.”
While Yuvraj is yet to fire, another senior player, Zaheer Khan, is yet to take the field for Daredevils amid rising speculation over the fast bowler’s fitness. Duminy said he would be available for the May 1 game against Kings XI Punjab.
“I think he [Zaheer] is about 95 per cent fit to be honest. My thinking is he will be up for selection for the game on the 1st. His progress has been good, he has been very determined to come back and represent Delhi,” said Duminy.
No drastic changes
He also said it wouldn’t be right to make drastic changes despite the heavy defeat they suffered.
“We have been inconsistent in both the batting and bowling departments and, as I said earlier, we need to take a lot of lessons out of today’s game, take a hard look at ourselves. It is not about pointing fingers. Each of us could have done 10 per cent better. Plus, we should not take the credit away from RCB, the way they came out and bowled.
“We got a few days off now and there is time to figure out what is the best combination for us. We need to explore some options and see whether we need to make changes. I wouldn’t think we will make drastic changes. We have been inconsistent, though there has been really good stuff from us as a team. We got one more game left here at the Kotla so we need to come back firing.”