The Delhi Daredevils turnaround has been the best thing about this IPL

After a point, Delhi fans refused to admit that they even had a team in the Indian Premier League. They could hardly be blamed – Delhi Daredevils finished ninth in the 2013 IPL season, eighth in 2014 and seventh in 2015. They were the ultimate also-rans, the butt of most jokes with their insipid performances.

Now, with four games to go, the boot is on the other foot. The Daredevils are third on the table with a game in hand, and look almost set to clinch a place in the playoffs. In fact, they could well top the table, too. It’s been an incredible turnaround – the sort of stuff which makes sport, even if it's the IPL, so special.

And they’ve achieved this turnaround by focusing on a simple aspect of the game which often gets overlooked: teamwork. There’s no Delhi player on the list of the top five run-scorers or wicket-takers. But that isn’t a weakness, it just means that they’ve played as a team and have had different people performing for them, rather than relying on individual contributions.

Sum of the parts

For example, take the 21-year old Sanju Samson. At first glance, this extremely-talented Kerala batsman’s individual record this season is nothing to write home about – an average of just above 30 in 11 games so far. But when the chips have been down, Samson has delivered.

In Delhi’s second game, Samson was the foil to Quinton de Kock’s power-hitting at the other end, soaking up the pressure so that the South African batsman could attack freely. Then, in the third game against the Mumbai Indians, when Delhi were struggling at 54/3, Samson dropped anchor and ensured that he and JP Duminy put together a repair job as they reached 164/4. They went on to win the game by 10 runs.

Similarly, take the case of Karun Nair. Eyebrows were raised when the Daredevils snapped up this 24-year old 'keeper from Rajasthan for a cool Rs 4.2 crore, 40 times his base price. But Nair, like Samson, has proved his worth to the team by clicking at key moments.

Both his half-centuries have come at times when the team was struggling – Delhi were floundering at 50/2, chasing 192 against Bangalore in their fourth match, when Nair linked forces with de Kock to take the team home. Two matches later, he guided the team out from a dire 32/3 to 186, a total that enabled a 27-run win.

Experienced heads at the helm

The Delhi Daredevils template this season has been to pick young, promising Indian players and back them to the hilt. And as the two above examples show, the strategy has worked wonders for them. Besides Samson and Nair, India’s U19 keeper Rishabh Pant has also been a productive investment, while in the bowling department Shahbaz Nadeem and Jayant Yadav have provided a steadying hand.

The other thing they've done right is to ensure that the youngsters are guided by a set of mentors. Enter Rahul Dravid and Zaheer Khan. Getting Dravid to mentor the Delhi team was probably the biggest coup by the owners because, very frankly, there are few better than him in Indian cricket when it comes to working with youngsters. As the former Indian captain has shown after his retirement, he loves working with young talent – Rajasthan Royals flourished under him and then the India U19 team, whom he guided to the World Cup finals this year. This year, he’s brought his Midas touch to Delhi.

Appointing Zaheer Khan captain was also a brilliant move. A cerebral player at his core, Khan showed that even when he had lost his pace – as he did in the latter half of his international career – he could still dismiss batsmen by simply out-thinking them. In the mad batting world of the IPL, he is one of the few bowling captains. And his captaincy has been a treat to watch – he’s been unconventional, funky and never afraid to take risks.

In an IPL season where the level of cricket has not always been the best, the Delhi Daredevils have been a breath of fresh air. Whether or not they win the title or even reach the playoffs, their policy of backing and supporting young Indian talents will surely benefit cricket.