Delhi Daredevils - Sehwag Leads Delhi's IPL Boys

The Delhi Daredevils team represents the capital in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket tournament. Aptly, it is captained by the formidable India batsman and opener, Virender Sehwag. The Delhi Daredevils have energized the crowd in their home ground at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in New Delhi with scintillating batting displays.

Delhi Daredevils have given good performances in the IPL, finishing at the top of the league rankings in the IPL 2 or the 2009 edition of the IPL. They have been semi-finalists twice.

The Daredevils' performance at IPL 4 or IPL 2011 has been lackluster. This may partly due to not retaining top India batsman, Gautam Gambhir in the squad. Sehwag has also left the 2011 IPL or IPL 4 mid-way to undergo a shoulder surgery.

GMR Group - Owner and Sponsors of Delhi Daredevils
The Delhi franchise of the IPL T20 cricket tournament was bought by the GMR Group for USD 84 million in 2008.

The GMR group sees its IPL foray as a "social asset". Their aim is to reach out to the community of Delhi by encouraging talent in various sports such as cricket. The subsidiary company GMR Sports Ltd. was formed to look after the sports-based investments of the group.

The sponsors and partners of the Delhi Daredevils IPL team include Muthoot group, Idea, Kingfisher, Panasonic, Adidas, Coca-cola, Tata motors and Max Healthcare.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Delhi Daredevils is Amrit Mathur.

Past Performance of the Daredevils in IPL 1 -3 (2009 - 2010)
Here's a bird's eye view of the Daredevils IPL performance till IPL 2010.

• IPL 2008 or IPL 1 - In the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008, the Delhi Daredevils gave good results. Some features of its play in IPL 1 are:
  
  
  • Out of 14 matches in the league stage, the Delhi Daredevils won 7.
  • The Daredevils were placed at fourth ranking in the IPL points table, with 15 points and a Net Run Rate (NRR) of +.342
  • The Delhi IPL team lost to the Rajasthan Royals in the semi-finals.
  • The captain of the 2008 Daredevils team was Virender Sehwag.
  • Other key Indian players of the IPL 1 Delhi squad included Gautam Gambhir, Amit Mishra, Sreevats Goswami, Dinesh Karthik and Manoj Tiwary. Important overseas players were Shoaib Malik, Glen McGrath and Daniel Vettori.
    
    
• IPL 2 or IPL 2009 - The Delhi Daredevils had a glorious year in the IPL 2009 held in South Africa. Although they could not go beyond the semi-final stage, they were at the top of the rankings. Some star aspects of their performance at IPL 2 are:
  
  
  • Out of 14 matches played, the Daredevils won 10 and lost 4.
  • They were ranked at the top of the IPL table with 20 points and NRR of +0.311
  • The Daredevils again qualified for the semi-finals, but lost again, this time to the Deccan Chargers.
  • The Daredevils went on to play in the Champion's League, a T20 cricket tournament for winners of domestic T20 leagues.
  • The 2009 Delhi Daredevils team was again captained by Virender Sehwag.
  • Excellent performances from players such as Daniel Vettori, AB de Villiers, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Dirk Nannes, Gautam Gambhir and Amit Mishra propelled them to the top of the rankings.
    
    
• IPL 3 or IPL 2010 - Although the Daredevils did not reach the semifinals in IPL 3, they still gave a good performance. Some features of their IPL 3 sojourn are:
  • Out of 14 matches, the Daredevils won 7 and lost 7.
  • In IPL 2010, the Delhi team was placed fifth in the IPL rankings with 14 points and NRR of +0.021.
  • Gautam Gambhir was the Daredevils captain during IPL 3.
  • Key players included David Warner, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag and Paul Collingwood.
    
    

Current IPL Edition - IPL 2011
In IPL 4 or the 2011 season of the IPL, players were released for re-auction. While the Delhi Daredevils team managed to retain Virender Sehwag and David Warner, Gautam Gambhir could not be retained. Gautam Gambhir is currently the captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders.

Virender Sehwag was again made captain of the Daredevils. When Sehwag proceeded for shoulder surgery mid-tournament, Australian James Hopes took over the reins as captain.

In IPL 2011, some key bowlers for the Daredevils are Ajit Agarkar, Ashok Dinda and Morne Morkel. Important batsmen and all-rounders are Sehwag, David Warner, Aaron Finch, Irfan Pathan, James Hopes and Naman Ojha. The leading batsman and bowler are Virender Sehwag and Irfan Pathan respectively.

The Delhi Daredevils have given a below-average performance in IPL 4, apart from some brilliant batting by Sehwag.

The current coach of the Delhi Daredevils is Greg Shipperd.

For more on the Delhi Daredevils, visit their website at www.www.delhidaredevils.com or the IPL official website at www.iplt20.com