IPL 2018: Gautam Gambhir confirmed as Delhi Daredevils captain by coach Ricky Ponting

Ponting knew Kolkata Knight Riders won't buy Gambhir.

Gautam Gambhir | GETTY

Gautam Gambhir was released by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL auction 2018. The veteran cricketer found Delhi Daredevils (DD) as his buyer. He might be playing for a new franchise, but his role will be the same. 

DD, being confident about Gambhir's leadership qualities, want him to lead the team, says coach Ricky Ponting on Saturday.

"We had a fair bit of thought into that. It is likely now that Gambhir will lead the team next season. We had conversation with him. He has conveyed to us that he would like to make a comeback to his home Delhi and hopefully lead the team," Ponting said after the auction.

"And if you look at his leadership, we did not find any fault when captaining KKR. His last season of IPL also has also been very good. So we thought it would be good to have him as captain working with some of the young Indian players. So, we have gone for an experienced captain and I am sure he will do the job for us," the Australian great added.

Ponting knew that KKR won't go after Gambhir. "Not really. When you look at it and see what they have done today is that they want to regenerate their franchise and the team. Look, Gautam has been there for a long time. He might himself felt it is time for a change for a fresh start. We are glad to have him as part of Delhi franchise."

The former Australian captain also talked about the reason behind going for uncapped players. "I think all the teams want to invest and nurture young talent," he said.

Ponting added that the youngsters are expected to edge out senior players in Twenty20 cricket.

"Playing this game is becoming increasingly difficult. Young players around the world are playing more and more T20 cricket. They develop their skills lot earlier, probably ten years ago.

"For old players, it is quite difficult to keep fit compared to young players. It is very hard to improve when you reach 35. You can keep yourself reasonably fit, so that might be the reason for some of the old players going cheaply in the auction."

 
 

By Sihyeu Singh - 28 Jan, 2018

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