IPL 2014 Match 26 prediction: Chennai (62%) expected to easily defeat Delhi (38%)
Prediction methodology
Note: Starting match 14 onwards, we are using only the data of IPL 2014 to predict the outcome of the matches of the current series.
Prediction: Chennai (62%) predicted to defeat Delhi (38%) (Match scorecard)
Delhi Daredevils and Chennai Super Kings offer two contrasting approaches to team building in IPL. Before the player auction, Delhi Daredevils completely dismantled their team, did not retain a single player from the previous season and went all in during the auction. They spent the largest amount of any team, and had two of the top three bids in the auction, for Kevin Pietersen and Dinesh Karthik. They also brought other international stars such as Nathan Coulter-Nile, JP Duminy, Quinton de Kock and Jimmy Neesham into their side. On the other hand, Chennai adopted a fairly conservative approach. A big believer in continuity, their team management retained four of their players before the auction. Then they built rest of the team around this solid core. They brought in overseas players like Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum, but also complemented them with local players like Mohit Sharma and Ishwar Pandey.
The return on investment for the two teams could not have been any more different. Delhi Daredevils have little to show for all the splurge they did during the auction, as they are currently at the bottom of the points table almost half-way through the tournament. They are still waiting for their big ticket purchases like Pietersen and Karthik to perform. The lack of good Indian players have hurt them badly, as they cannot include more than four overseas players in their final eleven. In contrast, Chennai have been phenomenal in the tournament so far and look all set to once again make it to the knock-out stage. They are already at the top of the points table. No wonder then, that in this match-up of the leader and the laggard, Chennai Super Kings are heavily favored to once again outmaneuver the Delhi Daredevils.
Cricmetric's current prediction success rate for IPL 2014: 13/24 (54%)
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