What's ailing Delhi Capitals?

A season that started with much promise has tapered off towards a zone where it could all mean nothing. Delhi are still in with a good chance to qualify but four defeats in a row has revealed some holes in the ship that will need some urgent fixing.

Reading the 22 yards and more

Against SRH in the previous game, Shreyas Iyer delighted David Warner at the toss when he announced the decision to field. Warner and Saha proceeded to make them pay dearly, and Iyer would go on to concede after the game that winning the toss was "unfortunate" and that he was "in two minds" about what to do. He hasn't been alone in such sentiments, with KL Rahul too admitting to similar challenges during the tournament. But for the second game in succession, Delhi have had to pay the price for not assessing the conditions well enough. Iyer was honest again after the loss to Mumbai.

"Obviously, we fell short of reading the wicket. We weren't upto the mark right from the start and those wickets in the Powerplay took down the momentum from us," he said and added later, "There are lots of flaws to be pointed out to, but we have got to believe in ourselves and be strong-headed, also be positive. You can't anticipate how it's (the pitch) going to play right from the start. Openers being there, it was important to get a good start, once you get the momentum, you can build on later. I feel 150 or 160 was a good total on such wickets."

There could be no foolproof way of getting this right every time but Delhi will be forced to look at this as keenly as they would look at other flaws.

The opening worries

Shikhar Dhawan with Ajinkya Rahane or Prithvi Shaw? This has been a persistent quandary for Delhi Capitals through the tournament. In their last 7 innings though, six times the opening stand hasn't lasted even one over. While there is no identifiable pattern of dismissals through them all, this has been a key factor in pushing them on the backfoot early. And every time there has been a different batsman falling prey.

Prithvi Shaw has been worked over with short balls by opposition pacers in the tournament while his replacement Ajinkya Rahane failed to bring anything more to the table.

DC went back to Shaw for the MI game only to see him fall prey to the short ball again. He has scores of 5, 64, 2, 66, 42, 19, 4, 0 , 0, 7 and 10 in the tournament which tell a story of blowing hot and cold. He offers a better strike-rate at the top but can he bring along consistency even with a sword hanging over his head?

Firepower and flexible plans through the middle overs

Invariably after the wickets in the opening over, DC in their last few games have been slow to rebuild. It has resulted in them registering two of the four lowest powerplay scores in the IPL . Whether it was Rahane or Shreyas Iyer attempting the anchor role, the ploy has simply failed as neither managed to stay on, and possibly revert the deficit by a quick finish in the latter half of the innings.

This fault was once again laid bare in the game against MI when Iyer and Pant put on 35 off 44 balls after the loss of two wickets. That this period of go-slow came against MI's second line of attack only amplified the nature of DC's single-minded ploy of starting slow and attacking late.

Ricky Ponting even said that this wasn't the plan during a mid-game conversation. He had gone and told the duo during the timeout that one of them now had to stay on till the end. That they were forced into attacking MI's frontline attack eventually, played into the opposition's hands. As Jasprit Bumrah was held back, the delay in attack only led to a heavy backfire.

The Pant dilemma

Should Rishabh Pant be attacking from the word go or should he give himself some time to get going? This season has seen Pant starting off slowly, invariably giving himself at least 10 balls before attempting the big shots he's known for. It has left DC with periods of play where there are two batsmen playing identical anchor roles at the same time. Additionally, the ploy has seen some defects when the big shots simply don't come off after this period of watchfulness.

Pant missed a couple of games midway due to an injury that robbed some of the momentum and gameplans he was building up to. Since the comeback, and the subsequent exit from the national white-ball teams, the focus on his batting has increased. The returns have not been enoug. But is it because of the fault in the new approach or is it just a case of needing time to find back some form? It's an answer that could possibly change DC's fortunes given Pant's talismanic nature.

Have they identified a best eleven?

The top side in the competition - Mumbai Indians - has an eleven that works for them irrespective of conditions or match-ups. The consistent run has seen players develop into their roles with increased focus and clarity. In contrast, Delhi Capitals have been conspicuous in chopping and changing. Whether it's their opening combination or the third pacer, that has seen them field Avesh Khan, Ishant Sharma, Harshal Patel, Tushar Deshpande, at various points in the tournament and still left with no clear answers.

A couple of injuries to key players midway didn't help their cause in identifying their best eleven and sticking to them, but invariably enough, their changes have resulted in them replacing one of their better performers for the sake of tactics or balance. Even Axar Patel hasn't been able to escape the axe despite being a standout performer.

Is the pace scare wearing off?

Anrich Nortje still holds the record for the fastest ball in the IPL according to the tournament's website. Kagiso Rabada picked up at least one wicket for 25 IPL games and was even leading the wicket charts this year. But David Warner's stunning assault has revealed a chink in the armor. Rabada has now gone wicketless in two games, and the pacers have been shown to be fallible.

They haven't been able to offer the control other lead pacers have been able to give their teams, nor strike as regularly in the powerplays. One of the reasons offered for that from Delhi included the change in the nature of the pitches, and the need to adapt accordingly. A possible rethink of plans from Rabada on how many cutters and cross-seam deliveries he uses per innings could be in the offing.

Delhi have just a day's gap before they take on RCB in a game that could decide their fate in the tournament. The fixes, if they are to come, need to come quick.