Delhi get massive boost ahead of Lucknow clash

In a big boost for Delhi, the franchise’s assistant coach, Shane Watson has confirmed that David Warner and Anrich Nortje will be available to play the next match on Thursday. Rishabh Pant and Co. are due to play their third match against Lucknow on Thursday at DY Patil Sports Academy in Mumbai.

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Both Warner and Anrich Nortje missed out on the first two matches due to different reasons. While Nortje was recuperating from his injury, Warner wasn’t available due to national commitments. The duo’s availability should come as a major boost to the team. Though, Mitchell Marsh’s availability for the next game is still doubtful.

“David Warner is definitely out of quarantine period now and is available for tomorrow night’s game which is very exciting. Anrich Nortje has been doing incredibly well over the last couple of weeks since he’s arrived here in India. Last night, he passed his last sort of fitness test to get through and be passed fit for selection, which is exciting that he’s now available for selection,” said Shane Watson in the pre-match virtual press conference.

“Mitch Marsh is progressing really well. Whether he’s available for selection, there is still one more training session as well to get through tonight. But he’s been progressing really well which is very exciting with the firepower he brings to the Delhi squad as well.” he added.

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Delhi have had a topsy-turvy start to the season thus far. Rishabh Pant and Co. managed to win the first game against Mumbai by 6 wickets but lost their last game at the hands of Gujarat by 14 runs. Gujarat batted first in that encounter and managed to score 171 runs in the first innings. Khaleel Ahmed (2 for 34), once again, impressed with the ball but it was Mustafizur Rahman, who made the biggest impact and picked 3 wickets for 23 runs in 4 overs.

In pursuit of the total, Delhi made a horrible start, losing the first three wickets for just 34 runs on the board. However, Rishabh Pant and Lalit Yadav then steadied the ship as the duo added 61 runs for the fourth wicket. However, once the duo got out, Delhi failed to build partnerships and eventually fell short of 14 runs. Nevertheless, the arrival of David Warner and Nortje will give Delhi a lot of confidence ahead of their next game against Lucknow.