IPL: Simmons asks DD to guard against complacency

New Delhi: Delhi Daredevils coach Eric Simmons on Wednesday asked his boys to guard against complacency when they face Deccan Chargers in an Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the Ferozeshah Kotla stadium here on Thursday. Deccan Chargers, 2009 champions, are yet to register a win this season and are on a three-match losing streak while Delhi, who finished last in 2011, have staked their claim for this year's title and are now sitting second on the points table.

Simmons said any team can go through a bad phase as it is the case with Deccan Chargers. The South African said Delhi are lucky as all their plans have clicked. "Sometimes you get your tactics right, sometimes you get them wrong. I think for us so far its worked pretty well. Lot of what we do is concentrate on our game, sometimes you can be too clever with the opposition and have an elaborate plan that you later can't implement. We are happy with the way we are playing at the moment," said Simmons at the Kotla.

Simmons said Deccan Chargers, who were desperate to get a win, can be dangerous. "Deccan Chargers are more dangerous in this situation than anything else. We certainly won't be complacent in terms of respecting the opposition. They are a very good side, they have match winners in their team and you can see how one person can make a huge difference, so we expect a tough game," he said.

Simmons said Deccan Chargers are the underdogs as they have nothing to lose. "Whenever you have a cricket team in Twenty20 competition who feel they are the underdogs, they can play freely. They have nothing to lose and then they are really dangerous so we'll be aware of that and we respect them as a team," he said.

Simmons also praised Shahbaz Nadeem saying he was impressed with the Delhi' left-arm spinner to bowl tightly during tense situations. "I am not surprised with Nadeem's performance. I think we have worked out some good ideas for him in terms of tactics. We have always known that he had the ability. He's got the ability to drift the ball, turn the ball, his control of the length, so he's done all those things well and he's added to that the implementation of those ideas in a match situation under pressure. I believe he will go from strength to strength," he said.

Simmons wants the famed Daredevils batting to be versatile.

"Our batting line-up has the ability to be versatile so we certainly don't want to be in a situation where the opposition can predict exactly what's coming next. As the tournament unfolds, we want to make full use of the versatility. The last few games we have chased moderate totals so we really haven't had a reason to be innovative," he said.