Reigning Ranji Trophy champions Delhi would be wishing their scorecards for this season read better. Four draws in as many matches, six points and the last but one spot in Group A have done a fair bit of damage to their hopes of retaining their title, and now, they must ensure victory over Orissa to keep their chances for a quarter-final spot alive.

After an outright win over Punjab, Orissa have moved to fifth spot in the points table.

However, the return of the big four — Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma and Virat Kohli — due to the cancellation of the remainder of the India-England ODI series will even out all on-paper equations and give the hosts a distinct edge over the visitors when the they lock horns in the Elite Division match beginning at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Saturday.

The impact was apparent in Delhi coach Vijay Dahiya’s promptness in naming the playing XI a day in advance, and the list didn’t include Shikhar Dhawan, Chetnya Nanda, Yogesh Nagar and Gaurav Chabbra. “They (Sehwag, Gambhir, Virat, Ishant) add a lot to our team, but in the dressing room they’ve never been star players. It’s the playing XI in the middle that matters,” said Dahiya.

At the Kotla on Friday, as Punit Bisht, Virat Kohli and Mithun Manhas were looking to hit the sweetest part of their blades, Dahiya’s main concern remained the failure of his famous batting line-up — one that includes the likes of Aakash Chopra, Shikhar Dhawan and Mithun Manhas.

... contd.