Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will return to action from the IPL 2024 season, confirmed Delhi Capitals (DC) director of cricket Sourav Ganguly.

Pant survived a near-fatal car accident in December last year. Subsequently, he underwent multiple surgeries and an extended rehabilitation period at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.

The southpaw is getting back on his feet slowly and steadily. On Thursday (November 9), he joined his teammates during Delhi Capitals’ training session at the Jadavpur University Salt Lake Campus ground in Kolkata.

“He’s (Pant) good now. He will play in the IPL next season,” Ganguly said in an interaction with reporters,

Ganguly also revealed that Rishabh is in Kolkata to strategise on team-building ahead of the upcoming IPL auction, due to take place in Dubai on December 19.

“Rishabh won’t be practising here though. There’s still time for him to get down to practice. By January (2024), he’ll get even better,” Ganguly said.

“We were talking about the team. He is the captain, so he put in his views regarding the upcoming auction. That’s the reason he has come here, to finalise certain aspects related to the team.”

In Rishabh Pant’s absence, David Warner led the Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2023 edition. The Delhi-based franchise endured a dismal campaign, finishing the season in the ninth position on the points table featuring 10 teams.

Pant was last seen in action during the tour of Bangladesh in December 2022. Mirpur Test against Bangladesh was his last appearance before he met with the accident.

The left-hander has played 33 Tests, 30 ODIs and 66 T20Is for India so far, amassing 4000+ international runs with six centuries. He was instrumental in India’s Test series win on Australian soil in 2020-21.

(With PTI Inputs)