Daredevils lose plot: Last year's table-toppers have failed on every front in IPL 6
At the post match press conference after Delhi Daredevils lost to Chennai Super Kings on Thursday, Mahela Jayawardene looked and sounded as though he was delivering a eulogy at a funeral.
Six defeats out of six, including an 86-run loss on Thursday, have all but sealed the Daredevils' fate in the Pepsi Indian Premier League, and the only possibilities that now remain are mathematical or miraculous.
Jayawardene tried to put up a brave front initially, but as he went on speaking, the acceptance and admission of his team's failures kept pouring out of the skipper.
Morne Morkel has hardly justified his billing as part of the best pace attack in the world that South Africa possess
"We lost too many wickets up front. On the field too, we made a couple of mistakes. Till about the 12th to 14th over we were in it, then MS [Dhoni] came in at a crucial time. Still 160-170 was a decent score to chase on this surface," the Sri Lankan said, pointing to yet another failure by the batsmen.
The statistics paint a bleak picture. The Daredevils have been the least effective batting and bowling side in this year's competition, and even though they have come close to winning a couple of games, most notably against Royal Challengers Bangalore when they lost in the Super Over, they haven't got across the line.
"We've had two bad games, the one against Mumbai in Mumbai and this one, where we haven't played well. In the other four, we have been very competitive, and have had opportunities. We should've won two of them, but didn't finish them clinically," Jayawardene said. For the record, the bowlers ended up conceding 209 for five in Mumbai, after having got the hosts down to one run for two wickets in the second over.
The absence of Kevin Pietersen and Jesse Ryder due to injuries has been cited as one of the reasons for the Daredevils' batting failures, but the rest of the line-up is virtually the same that dominated and topped the league stage last year. Jayawardene admits the team just can't hide behind the Pietersen excuse, or that Virender Sehwag missed three games due to back spasms.
Twice in the game against Mumbai, Nehra let the batsmen climb over him, resulting in the only 200-plus total of the season.
"KP's absence is not the whole thing. Last year when we started, everyone was in good form and we kept dominating. The bowlers also created pressure. As a team, we have to take responsibility. We haven't been consistent with bat or ball," he said.
"Even with Viru, just having him around doesn't solve all the problems. As unit, we need to score runs. We aren't doing it." This makes it puzzling why Delhi haven't named for replacements for Pietersen or Ryder.
Asked if he still had hopes of qualification, Jayawardene said: "Otherwise there's no point being in the tournament. We need to give ourselves a chance. Everyone is beating each other, we are the only ones without a point. If we win two or three games, with six points, we'll be in the mix, and then we can try to creep in."
But his voice carried more hope than conviction.
Coach Simons appears helpless
Eric Simons has been the Delhi Daredevils' head coach since the beginning of last season, and none of his plans seem to be working this year.
A former South African pacer, Simons was head coach of the country between 2002 and 2004, including the infamous exit from their home World Cup in 2003.
He was also India's bowling coach till the end of the India's tour to Australia last year, which saw MS Dhoni's men lose all four Tests and not make it to the ODI triseries final.
He will be under immense pressure to at least save face for Delhi this season.
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