IPL 2020: Marcus Stoinis' brute power and late flourish lend much-needed balance to Delhi Capitals

Earlier this year, Marcus Stoinis was left out of the Australian T20 squad for the tour of South Africa, despite being the leading scorer in the Big Bash. The theory was Stoinis had scored all of his 705 runs in the BBL as an opening batsman and he should be only considered as a top-order batsman. It made sense to some extent, but the fact that the selectors felt Stoinis couldn’t even feature in the middle order as a hard-hitting all-rounder seemed slightly bizarre. At the time Ricky Ponting had stated, “I just don’t think there was room for both Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh in those squads and they’ve decided to go with Marsh”. Fast forward to the IPL and Ponting, the Delhi Capitals coach, clearly felt Stoinis could still be an asset to the franchise at No 5 and believed he could make a swift transition down the order. In two of Delhi’s five wins this season, Stoinis has been the game-changer with the bat. Last night against Royal Challengers Bangalore , the bulky all-rounder walked in the 12th over and ended up unbeaten on 53 off 26 balls. He had given the Delhi innings the impetus and the spark that enabled them to reach a formidable total of 196. [caption id=“attachment_8883131” align=“alignnone” width=“1200”] Stoinis’ late flurry propelled Delhi Capitals to a big total aganst RCB, Image courtesy: Sportzpics[/caption] In the 19 matches this season, it is evident that a 15 or a 20-ball cameo by a middle-order batsman (No 5, 6, or 7) has had a significant impact on the match. Each of Mumbai Indians wins has featured a Keiron Pollard and Hardik Pandya blitz at the end. A Rahul Tewatia epic floored the Kings XI, a Sam Curran cameo got CSK over the line in the opening game against Mumbai, a Priyam Garg blitz propelled the Sunrisers Hyderabad over CSK and even a Jofra Archer special ensured Rajasthan toppled CSK. The point is that teams that have players batting at 5, 6, or 7 with a strike-rate in excess of 200 are vital to success. Last season, Delhi had relied far too heavily on Rishab Pant. The left-hander had an outstanding season, but for the majority of the matches batted at No 4. It meant that Delhi always lacked one power hitter in the middle order who could change the fortune of the match in the space of 15 or 20 balls. Analyse the teams at the bottom of the IPL table and it is clear that they don’t have a power-hitting all-rounder in the vital No 5 or 6 slots. The induction of Stoinis has given Delhi another strong base this season and it has been one of the key reasons why they are sitting at the top of the IPL ladder.

Our highest-ever score against RCB 🔥

Over to our bowlers now to see us through 👏🏽#RCBvDC #Dream11IPL #IPL2020 #YehHaiNayiDilli pic.twitter.com/vs9PxA7tA0

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) October 5, 2020

It is full credit to Stoinis that he has been able to make that adjustment as an opener to a No 5. At the back end of BBL, teams had discovered he can be kept quiet by bowling full and wide during the death overs. But in the IPL, Stoinis has countered that tactic by shuffling across his stumps. It has enabled him to use his bottom hand to whip the ball through the on-side. It has resulted in him scoring in areas with fewer fielders and also upset bowling plans. After the first game, Stoinis told broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation, “I try to close down the areas where the bowlers can bowl, and it worked today”. It is a classic example of a cricketer who has learned to stay ahead of the game. Stoinis’ brute power has also been an asset on the big grounds. Such is his muscular strength that he has been able to heave low full tosses over the 80-metre boundary with a flick of his wrists. Stoinis has always been a power player and batting down the order has given him the license to be more expansive. Add to that, he has played a lot of his T20 cricket on a large playing surface such as the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) which has resulted in him understand the various angles and pockets to target on big grounds such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The world has been waiting for Stoinis to play a pivotal role in the IPL for a few seasons now. He has always been a shining light in a couple of games in a season, but at Delhi, he seems more confident and consistent. As Sunil Gavaskar stated in commentary last night, “He seems to be batting with more freedom than when he was at RCB”. Perhaps it is freedom. Stoinis deserves a fair chunk of credit and as does Ricky Ponting for getting the best out of him at that crucial No 5 spot. With Stoinis lower in the order, the Delhi team just seems complete.