IPL 2023: ?I don't think they will come close this time,? Aakash Chopra doesn?t feel this team will qualify for the playoffs

IPL 2023: The wait for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 has come down to just two days now. The 16th edition of the cricket carnival in India will begin from 31st March and much like all seasons, it promises to be another blockbuster season. The preparations are in full flow by the teams as they are sweating hard in the nets. Many fans and pundits have also engaged in banters and have started predicting the teams that will qualify for the playoffs. With the kind of competition, the league offers, it?s fair to say that any team can upset any opposition and the one who ticks all the right boxes will be through as the margin of error will be very less.?

IPL 2023: Aakash Chopra doesn?t feel Delhi Capitals will qualify for the playoffs 

Delhi Capitals have been among the top franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL) since the last few years. Except for last season, they qualified for the playoffs in every season since 2019 and have been one of the dominant teams in the tournament of late.?

Last year too they were on the verge of qualifying but they lost against Mumbai Indians in their last league game which eliminated them from the tournament. They finished 6th on the points table but they were spot on with the brand of cricket they played. 

However, this time around, it?ll be a difficult challenge for them to qualify as they will be without their skipper Rishabh Pant, who was ruled out of the IPL 2023, due to the accident he suffered a few months ago. Not only they will miss him as a batter but also they will be without a specialist keeper in the side.?

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Their bowling looks inexperienced as well but one cannot write off the talent they have in their armoury. Delhi Capitals will be led by David Warner in the absence of Rishabh Pant and the batter no doubt has done an exceptional job as a skipper whenever he has got the opportunity. 

With the first game of the league just a few days away from now, the cricketer-turned-commentator feels that Delhi Capitals won?t come close to the trophy this time. While speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, he elaborated: 

"Only three teams (from the original franchises) have not lifted the trophy so far - Punjab, Delhi and RCB. Delhi have also come close, all teams come close sometime or the other, but I don't think they will come close this time.?

IPL 2023: Aakash Chopra names his Delhi Capitals? XI for the league 

IPL 2023: Although Chopra feels that it won?t be a great season for DC this time around, he picked the best XI for the team. At the top, he named the duo of David Warner and Prithvi Shaw and also slotted Mitchell Marsh at No.3. He didn?t hesitate to pick Manish Pandey at No.4 but was confused about one between Rilee Rossouw and Rovman Powell.?

He wasn?t confident about DC asking Sarfaraz Khan to open the innings but backed him to be the keeper in the side. Akshar Patel and Sarfaraz Khan are two spinners in his team whereas he picked Anrich Nortje, Chetan Sakariya and either of Ishant Sharma or Mukesh Kumar as the third pacer in the team. 

Here?s Aakash Chopra?s DC playing XI 

David Warner (C)
Prithvi Shaw?
Mitchell Marsh?
Manish Pandey?
Rilee Rossouw /Rovman Powell?
Sarfaraz Khan (wk)
Akshar Patel?
Kuldeep Yadav?
Anrich Nortje?
Chetan Sakariya?
Ishant Sharma/ Mukesh Kumar?

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