New Delhi: Delhi have a "80 to 90 per cent chance" of qualifying for the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals if they manage to register two outright wins in their next four games, said head coach Vijay Dahiya here on Tuesday after the hosts earned three points from their drawn game against Tamil Nadu.
"Odisha's victory against Karnataka and Baroda's win over Haryana have thrown open Group B. Delhi have 11 points from four matches and third on the table, while Uttar Pradesh are fourth with 10 points but they have played a game less (three). So we have 80 to 90 percent chance of qualifying for the knock-out stage. The race is still wide open," Dahiya told reporters after the match.
Delhi walked away with three points by virtue of their first-innings lead over Tamil Nadu in the Ranji Trophy Group B tie that ended in a draw at Feroze Shah Kotla ground on Tuesday. Delhi now play three of their next four games away from home, starting December 1 against Haryana in Lahli. "We will look to secure a win in Lahli as it has the reputation of producing results. We will be leaving for Lahli either on November 29 in evening or November 30 late morning," he said.
Delhi coach Dahiya said that they have to register two outright wins in their next four games to qualify for the quarter-finals.
On injured paceman Ashish Nehra who did not play in the match against TN, the coach said, "He is improving every day but we don't want to take chances with his fitness. He is a kind of bowler who gives his 100 per cent whenever he plays for the team. We will take him along to Lahli but on his selection in the playing eleven, we will take a call later."
Expressing satisfaction with the result in this game, Delhi captain Shikhar Dhawan said there were no regrets that his team had to field for two successive days. "We had to give ourselves the chance to earn seven points, plus we wanted our bowlers to have bowl in second innings. It's fine, happy with the team's performance and three points," he said. On Delhi's next game against Haryana, he said, "Lahli wicket has always produced results so we will look for an outright victory."
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