Marlon Samuels, Carlos Brathwaite, West Indies, Delhi Daredevils, IPL 2017
Marlon Samuels (L) joins Carlos Brathwaite at the Delhi DaredevilsReuters

The Delhi Daredevils had quite a lot of interesting players to choose from and they have gone with the man who played a match-winning knock for the West Indies in the final of the World T20 – Marlon Samuels – as the replacement for Quinton de Kock.

With the other hero of that unforgettable final already in the squad – Carlos Brathwaite – the Delhi Daredevils probably thought, hey why not have Samuels, who was also instrumental in leading WI to the World T20 title in 2012, in as well.

De Kock was ruled out of the entire IPL 2017, before the start of the tournament, after suffering a finger injury while on South Africa duty.

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Questions were being asked over and over again over why the Delhi Daredevils were not naming a replacement for De Kock, when it was quite obvious they needed one.

The Delhi Daredevils, this season, have shown their inexperience while batting, with the management's decision to back the youngsters, at times working against them.

What Samuels will bring is a really strong option in the middle – at No.4 or No.3 – and it will also lend a lot more balance, in terms of experience, to the batting lineup.

It also makes sense because the Delhi Daredevils will lose Sam Billings, who is set to join up with the England squad to play one-day internationals against Ireland early next month.

Billings has been one of the more important batsmen in the top order for the Delhi Daredevils, so to offset that loss, they have decided to bring Samuels in, while also adding a bit more steel to the batting lineup.

Delhi Daredevils, Mathews, Karun, Zaheer, IPL 2017
Delhi Daredevils needed more experience in their squadIANS

During chases, the one against the Mumbai Indians being a case in point, the Delhi Daredevils batsmen have made wrong decisions or felt the pressure a little more than they should, and Samuels will definitely help in the regard.

Samuels has played in the IPL for the Pune Warriors India before, while his record in T20 international cricket is pretty solid.

Marlon Samuels T20I record: Matches: 55.Innings: 53. Runs: 1277. Average: 28.37. Highest: 85 not out. Strike rate: 115.56.

The Delhi Daredevils are currently seventh in the IPL 2017 points table, with two wins from six matches. Maybe Samuels is the man to turn their fortunes around and push them up into the top four.

Watch the highlights of the World T20 2016 final