IPL 2020: Delhi Capitals strongest possible lineup

The Delhi Capitals entered the IPL 2020 player auction with the aim of building a team capable of winning their first IPL title and went after every big name that got announced. Having already got the experienced duo of Ajinkya Rahane and Ravichandran Ashwin on board in the trade window, the team management looked to secure the services of a few star players to bolster their squad and was quite successful in that endeavor.

At the auction, Shimron Hetmyer and Marcus Stoinis were their biggest buys. Besides those two, they also signed the English pair of Jason Roy and Chris Woakes. Alex Carey was also roped in as a backup for Rishabh Pant while the fast bowling attack was updated with the addition of Mohit Sharma and Tushar Deshpande.

The Capitals already possessed a strong Indian core and hence decided to big for the overseas stars in the auction. Here's a look at their strongest possible lineup for IPL 2020:

---

Openers - Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan will open the innings along with Prithvi Shaw

Shikhar Dhawan will look to impress the selectors with his performance in next year's edition of the IPL to stake his claim for the opener's slot in the national team. Dhawan has been a big name in the IPL, having played 159 games. In those matches, the left-handed batsman has aggregated 4,579 runs at an average of 33.42 with 37 half-centuries.

Opening the innings along with Dhawan will be India’s upcoming star, Prithvi Shaw. An unfortunate injury and an eight-month suspension kept the young lad from Mumbai out of the cricket field but he has been flawless with the bat ever since he has come back to competitive cricket.

He has featured in 25 IPL games, scoring 598 runs at a strike rate of 141.04. The Shaw-Dhawan combination will give a left-right dynamic at the top and is more than capable of providing explosive starts to the team.

Middle Order - Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer (c), and Rishabh Pant (wk)

Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant will form the team's core

It was surprising to see the Delhi Capitals bidding so aggressively for Shimron Hetmyer because they do not seem to have an empty spot in their top five.

Ajinkya Rahane is the perfect number three batsman for T20 cricket as the former Rajasthan Royals skipper can anchor the innings very well.

Skipper Shreyas Iyer finds the number four position to be the most suitable for him as he can express himself and play his natural game there. He comes in at two-down in international cricket as well. Hence, he can enhance his batting style by continuing to bat at the number four position for his franchise.

India's upcoming wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant will bat at number five for the Delhi Capitals. In case the situation demands, the team can even promote him to the top. He can change the game with his big shots and has unbelievable hitting power. He holds the record for the highest individual IPL score by an Indian batsman and will be a valuable player for his home franchise.

All-Rounders - Marcus Stoinis, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Chris Woakes

Marcus Stoinis will bat at number six

The Delhi Capitals made an excellent decision by signing Marcus Stoinis during the second half of the IPL Auction 2020. Having cost the Capitals a whopping 4.8 Crores INR, he is most likely to be their premier batting all-rounder. Though he can bat up the order, number six will be the perfect position for the Australian, giving him the option to go big from the very first ball he faces.

Coming in at number seven will be Ravichandran Ashwin. The former Kings XI Punjab star is known for his economical bowling in the middle overs and, if he gets the freedom to, can whack a few big ones with the bat in the final overs. Though Ashwin has shown his caliber with the ball, he is yet to prove himself as an all-rounder in the IPL.

Chris Woakes was perhaps the best signing made by the Delhi Capitals in IPL Auction 2020 as the English all-rounder can not only bowl the most important overs in a T20 match but can also provide a good finish to the innings with the bat. The team management can very well trust him to bowl four overs every game and chip in with a few wickets as well.

Bowlers - Sandeep Lamichhane, Kagiso Rabada, and Ishant Sharma

Kagiso Rabada will lead the Delhi Capitals' fast bowling attack

With two quality leg-spinners present in the squad, the Delhi Capitals may face a dilemma in picking one out of Sandeep Lamichhane and Amit Mishra. Given that teams prefer to exhaust their overseas quota in the playing XI, Delhi would wish to have the Nepalese leg-spinner in their final XI. The youngster has impressed a lot in T20 cricket and will look to continue with his form in the upcoming IPL season.

South African speedster Kagiso Rabada gained the cricket universe’s attention with his classy bowling spells in IPL 2019. The onus of leading the Delhi bowling attack will be on his shoulders once again. Rabada has played 18 IPL games in his career so far and scalped 31 wickets, with his best figures being 4/21.

Supporting Rabada in the pace battery will be India’s Test star, Ishant Sharma. The right-arm pacer found his lost touch in limited-overs cricket during the previous IPL season. He had been a vital part of the Delhi Capitals team last season and will look to contribute to the team’s cause once again in IPL 2020.