IPL 2021: Good news for Delhi Capitals, Chris Woakes impresses with all-round performance against India on return from injury

With just two weeks left for the IPL 2021 Phase 2 in the UAE, Delhi Capitals would be a happy team. Their England pacer Chris Woakes has not only made a recovery from injury but also made a stunning return both with the ball and the bat to send a warning signal to all franchises including Virat Kohli’s RCB.

Against India in the 4th Test, Chris Woakes returned with four wickets for 55 runs in the 1st innings while hammered 50 runs off just 60 balls to give England a 99-run first-innings lead.

With the ball, he sent back Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma, CSK duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur and his Delhi Capitals’ temporary captain Rishabh Pant. With the bat, he punished Indian bowlers, smashing 50 off just 60 balls including 11 boundaries.

With his return, Delhi Capitals’ bowling department looks outstanding. Apart from Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Chris Woakes will add the batting depth. In the first half of IPL 2021, Woakes returned with five wickets in three matches that he played with a decent economy of 7.45.

Meanwhile, table-toppers Delhi Capitals have begun practice in Dubai ahead of the resumption of the tournament. The franchise is currently in a three-week-long camp with Indian stars besides Steve Smith.

As for regular captain Shreyas Iyer, he was the first Delhi Capitals player to begin practice in UAE for IPL. He reached Dubai along with coach Pravin Amre a week before the team’s arrival. With his return to the team following a six-month lay-off with injury, the team will have a dependable batsman in the middle-order.

However, instead of Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant will continue to be the captain in the IPL 2021. Under his captaincy, Delhi Capitals have topped the points table with six wins in eight games and have performed well.

As per a Cricbuzz report, the co-owners of the franchise Kiran Kumar Granthi and Parth Jindal now have reached the decision to continue with Rishabh Pant. They do not want to take any chances considering his lack of competitive games.

However, Granthi, who is now running the franchise as per the internal agreement, refused to commit. He told Cricbuzz that a decision will be reached once all the players and coaches assemble in Dubai.

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