IPL 2009 - Delhi Daredevils Move into Favourites
by Juris Graney
The cricket betting lines for today’s match shows that there is plenty on offer for the dedicated punter.
Despite the Delhi Daredevils (-150) and Mumbai Indians (+120) having not faced each other in the tournament so far, there are a few factors from each of the team’s earlier matches that could give punters an insight into just who is likely to come away with the victory.
Delhi (P7/W5/L2) have the chance of securing outright first while Mumbai (P8/W3/L4) on the other hand have seven points and sit in seventh spot with narrow losses early in the competition leaving them hanging onto the vital top four by their fingernails.
A quick check of the overall statistics for both teams offers up a tiny insight into a possible outcome. Mumbai have a slender advantage with their overall batting, averaging 153 per innings while Delhi average 141.
Mumbai’s opposition struggle to score fluently against their bowling attack averaging 136 while the Delhi bowlers offer up an average of 149 runs per innings so on those statistics alone, Mumbai should be seen as slight favourites.
That is of course until Mumbai Indian’s performance in their last match against the Deccan Chargers where they were unable to chase down 145.
Much like Deccan had done in the past, Mumbai’s top order faltered with their two talismanic players Sanath Jayasuria (5) and captain Sachin Tendulkar (2) falling early to leave Mumbai 2/7 off 1.5 overs leaving ‘keeper Pinal Shah (29 off 19 balls) and JP Duminy (52 off 48) left to steer the team to victory however it wasn’t enough.
Chief destroyer for Deccan was India’s Rohit Sharma’s right arm off break claiming 4/6 off two overs, including a hat trick, while adding 38 off 36 balls with the bat in a man of the match performance.
Of concern for Mumbai is Harbhajan Singh hasn’t shined in the tournament so far taking just three wickets in six matches at an average of nearly 40 however their strike weapon, Lasith Malinga, continues to elevate his asking price for next year’s tournament taking 11 wickets in six matches at an average of 9.45 and at a strike rate of 11.72 making him Mumbai’s most devastating bowler.
Meanwhile for Delhi, Aussie David Warner has provided some stability and flair at the top of the order and has already contributed 87 in two outings at a strike rate of 138.1 while Gautam Gambhir hit form in his last match against Kolkata, which could send a shiver up the backs of the Mumbai bowlers.
