Delhi Capitals (DC) coach Ricky Ponting has said that though ideally, he would love Rishabh Pant to be next to him in the dugout in the upcoming IPL 2023, there are other ways to ensure that he can be made part of the dugout throughout the tournament.
Notably, Rishabh Pant is recovering from a serious accident that happened in December last year. He had to undergo several skin grafts to treat abrasions on his body in a Dehradun hospital and then was moved to Mumbai, where he underwent surgery on his right knee.
Pant is expected to be out of action for a year or more and this includes the IPL 2023, where he was supposed to lead the Delhi Capitals. In his absence, the DC management has given the captaincy reigns to David Warner.
Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting has said that it would be tough for the team without their skipper.
“In an ideal world for me, he’d be sitting next to me in the dugout every match. But if that’s not possible, we’d like to make him part of the team in ways possible. We can have his number on our shirts or on caps. Just to make it clear that he’s our leader, even if he’s not with us,” Ponting said during a team event in Delhi on Friday.
Ponting also shared his plans for DC’s keeper in Pant’s absence and said: “We haven’t decided that yet. Sarfaraz (Khan) has joined us and we’ll look at the practice games ahead to decide that. That’s one big hole Rishabh leaves behind. With the impact player rule coming in, we can use a number of ways (to zero in on playing lineup).”
All-rounder Akshar Patel has been named as vice-captain to skipper Warner. Warner was the leading run-maker for the Capitals’ last IPL, scoring 432 runs at an average of 48 and a healthy strike rate of 150.52 including five half-centuries.
(Indian Express inputs)
