IPL 2018: New era begins for Delhi Daredevils & Kings XI Punjab

MOHALI: Aggression and entertainment will be the key words for Kings XI Punjab this season. The team’s mentor Virender Sehwag wants KXIP to play a brand of cricket that will resonate with the spectators. He has even said, “Why go for singles when you can hit fours and sixes!”
With the likes of Chris Gayle, Aaron Finch, David Miller, Marcus Stoinis, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Yuvraj Singh and Mayank Agarwal in their ranks, Kings XI have enough firepower to decimate any opposition just through their batting strength. And Sehwag wants his team to show their “full potential”.
Kings XI’s first test will be against Delhi Daredevils on their home ground on Sunday. Both teams have perennially been underachievers in the IPL but it’s a fresh start and the franchise owners have put together explosive teams. If Kings XI have Gayle and Finch at the top of the batting order, the Daredevils possess the swashbuckling pair of Jason Roy and Colin Munro as their opening options.
Talented Indian batsmen form the core of the middle-order for the two sides. Rahul, Yuvraj, Manoj Tiwary and Nair are the choices for Kings XI head coach Brad Hodge, while Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Vijay Shankar and Gurkeerat Mann are the middle-order alternatives for Daredevils. Proven hitters and finishers in the form of David Miller and Marcus Stoinis bolster Kings XI, while Glenn Maxwell and Chris Morris give DD an advantage in the middle and towards the end overs.
Both sides are led by two sharp and thinking captains. Gautam Gambhir, who returned to Delhi after playing for Kolkata Knight Riders for the last seven seasons, has a proven track record of winning IPL trophies. He helped KKR win the title in 2012 and 2014. Gambhir is tactically very sound.
Kings XI appointed Ravichandran Ashwin as the leader of their side this year. Although Ashwin has little experience of captaincy, he has a sharp mind and is a shrewd tactician. One can expect him to be innovative and put forth some out-of-the-box ideas. DD, though, have a much better fast bowling lineup at their disposal. Pacers Trent Boult, Mohammad Shami, Morris, and Liam Plunkett – who replaced the injured Kagiso Rabada – form a better attack than KXIP’s Andrew Tye, Barinder Sran, Ankit Rajpoot and Mohit Sharma.
The spinners of both teams are again on similar pedestal. For Kings XI, Ashwin and Axar Patel will shoulder the responsibilities; and on the other hand, the experienced duo of Amit Mishra and Shahbaz Nadeem are DD’s impact tweakers. Kings XI’s head coach Brad Hodge believes this year his team has ample amount of match-winners to make a difference.
“If you look at the difference of this side compared to the past squads, I think there is definitely a rise in standard. We've got a lot of superstars, a lot of match-winners, which makes our team extremely dangerous, which should be good for future,” he said.