Delhi Capitals signed Jake Fraser-McGurk as a replacement player for fast bowler Lungi Ngidi ahead of the 2024 edition of the IPL with the South African pacer yet to recover from the lower-back injury he suffered during SA20 playing for the Paarl Royals. While it may have come as a surprise to many considering Fraser-McGurk is a top-order batter while he replaced a pace bowler, it is likely because of the base price consideration.
Since Lungi Ngidi was picked at his base price of INR 50 Lakh and Fraser-McGurk was in the same bracket it made sense for the Capitals to name the replacement this way. Hence, Harry Brook, who had a base price of INR 2 crore has allowed the Capitals to now look at fast bowlers and pace-bowling all-rounders options from every single price bracket starting from the top. With the tournament approaching in just a week's time, here's a look at possible options Delhi Capitals could look at for Brook's replacement-
Josh Hazlewood (base price INR 2 cr): The Australian pacer, who is expected to become a father at the end of March was released by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ahead of IPL 2024 auction. No other team even picked Josh Hazlewood because of uncertainty about his availability. But with Delhi having Anrich Nortje and Jhye Richardson as two frontline pacers and Hazlewood's base price matching that of Brook, the Capitals could afford a pace-bowling option coming late into the season.
Jason Holder (base price INR 1.5 cr): Jake Fraser-McGurk became the first choice of the Delhi Capitals as soon as an injury took place because of him being part of the franchise's satellite side in the International League T20, Dubai Capitals. Now, if they need a pace option and with Nortje and Richardson already in the squad, the Capitals could also be in the market for a pace-bowling all-rounder as Mitchell Marsh's backup and Jason Holder, another player in the ILT20 side could be seen as a potential replacement for Brook.
Lance Morris (base price INR 75 Lakh): Anrich Nortje's workload is being slowly built up by the Warriors in the ongoing CSA T20 Challenge. Should Nortje not being a starter in all 14 games for the Capitals, the 2020 finalists could look at someone like the South African pace ace in the form of Lance Morris, who bowls fast, hits the deck hard and could cause problems for the batters.
Luke Wood (base price INR 50 Lakh): The Capitals have liked a left-arm pace bowling option in their squad, for example, Mustafizur Rahman for the last couple of years. Since Khaleel Ahmed has become a walk-in, Rahman didn't get many chances. However, if the Capitals do want to look in that direction, England's Luke Wood might not be a bad option given his exploits with the ball, especially in the powerplay. Wood has also been in fine form with the ball in the BPL and is currently in PSL.
Delhi Capitals squad for IPL 2024: Rishabh Pant(w/c), Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw, Yash Dhull, Lalit Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Pravin Dubey, Khaleel Ahmed, Vicky Ostwal, Mukesh Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Abishek Porel, Ricky Bhui, Kumar Kushagra, Rasikh Salam, Sumit Kumar, Swastik Chhikara, Anrich Nortje, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Tristan Stubbs, Jhye Richardson, Shai Hope, Jake Fraser-McGurk
