IPL 2020 review: Delhi Capitals ruin it at the end despite best-ever season

In what turned out to be their best-ever performance in a season, Delhi Capitals (DC) managed to finish as the runners-up of the 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL). Playing their first-ever final, DC were up against the defending and record champions Mumbai Indians (MI), as the latter drubbed them to clinch their fifth title.

However, despite their best performance, DC seemed to be lacklustre in their most important match ever, as they earnestly ruined it at the end. Honestly, they can be termed as the chokers of the IPL. Nonetheless, they still are the second-best this season, as we rate their performance in all departments, besides analysing where they could have done right.

Batting: When it comes to DC's batting, they are indeed one of the star-studded ones. Although they lacked firepower, in the form of Engish opener Jason Roy, who had pulled out due to an injury, it was still lethal enough. It was dominated by veteran opener Shikhar Dhawan, who was their highest run-scorer, with 618 runs in 17 innings at an astonishing average of 44.14, including twin centuries and four half-centuries. He was followed by skipper Shreyas Iyer and young opener Prithvi Shaw. Although Shimron Hetmyer looked promising initially, he was inconsistent, while Rahane did not impress either.
Top performers: Dhawan, Iyer and Shaw.

All-rounders: The all-round department lacked enough firepower. However, it was Australia's Marcus Stoinis, who produced the performance of his life in all departments. He scored the third-highest runs for the side, 352 in 17 innings at an average of 25.14 and three half-centuries. As for his bowling, he claimed the fourth-most for the side, with  13 wickets in 13 innings at an economy of 9.53. He was followed by Axar Patel, who rocked with the ball. While uncapped Australian Daniel Sams failed to impress with the ball in three matches, Keemo Paul and Lalit Yadav did not get a game.
Top performers: Stoinis and Axar.

Wicketkeeping: The department possessed a couple of giants, but only one prospered, and it was none other than young Indian Rishabh Pant. He looked in a different colour throughout the tournament, scoring the fourth-most runs for the side. As for his wicketkeeping, he was the so-called bronze medallist, inflicting the third-most dismissals this season, after Quinton de Kock and MS Dhoni. While Australia's Alex Carey played three games, he barely dazzled.
Top performer: Pant

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Spin bowling: The department suffered a setback, as veteran leggie Amit Mishra injured his fingers after three games and was ruled out. Nonetheless, it was fellow veteran and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who rose to the occasion, claiming the third-most for the side: 13 wickets in 15 innings at an economy of 7.66. Other than him, uncapped Indian Pravin Dubey went wicketless in three games, while Nepal's Sandeep Lamichhane, surprisingly, did not earn a match.
Top performer: Ashwin

Pace bowling: This is the department that nailed it, despite a couple of setbacks in the form of Ishant Sharma and Chris Woakes. While Stoinis shined as a pacer too, among the specialist ones, it was South Africa's Kagiso Rabada, who claimed the most for the side: 30 wickets in 17 innings at an economy of 8.34, including a couple of four-wicket hauls. He was followed by fellow South African, Anrich Nortje, who claimed the second-most. While uncapped Harshal Patel and Tushar Deshpande were somewhat useful, Mohit Sharma and Avesh Khan played a game each and failed to strike.
Top performers: Rabada and Nortje.

Fielding: DC were decent on the field, compared to other sides, while it was once again Rabada here, who had the safest hands, claiming eight catches, followed by Hetmyer, who claimed seven. The latter also had the best catching rate per match, of 0.58. Among others, who impressed, were Axar, Iyer and Dhawan.
Top performers: Rabada and Hetmyer.

What could have they done better?
All-rounders: Although the department was headlined by Stoinis, giving some game time to Keemo Paul would have made sense, owing to his effectiveness with the ball and fielding, mostly after Sams failed in a game.
Spin bowling: While Ashwin did most of the job, it was utterly surprising to see Lamichhane entirely missing out. The overseas department was quite settled for DC. Nonetheless, trying Lamichhane out at the latter stage of the tournament, especially when the team was struggling, would have made sense, particularly for his spin bowling, which could have been influential on the slow pitches of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

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