Delhi coach Dahiya not concerned about loss of Test stars

Ghaziabad - With the Test stars all set to leave the squad for the first two Test matches against England, Delhi coach Vijay Dahiya said Monday he has enough back-up for the long Ranji Trophy season.

Despite the star-studded team, Delhi suffered a humiliating six-wicket loss against Uttar Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy opener here.

Delhi skipper Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli and Ishant Sharma will set out for Ahmedabad for the first Test against England from Nov 15.

“It is always an advantage having the likes of Sehwag, Gambhir and Kohli in the team but we have a good middle-order that we can depend on. Mithun Manhas and Puneet Bisht have looked very good. We have the back-up,” said Dahiya on the sidelines of Delhi’s Ranji Trophy Group B tie against Uttar Pradesh.

“Importantly, Shikhar Dhawan will also be back for us for the upcoming matches and he has been very consistent so far and performing well. So with Sehwag and others going away, I don’t think it will matter much. We have good enough back-up.”

Dhawan, who recently got married, is currently playing for Mumbai A against England XI in a practice match in Mumbai.

Dahiya said he was not bothered about the form of his batsmen.

“I am not too concerned about the form of the batsmen. We have some really experienced guys out here and they are very good cricketers. It is the shot selection I am worried about. During this match, most of our batsmen looked in touch but wrong shots on the wrong balls cost them their wickets. Otherwise technique wise, there is no issue,” added Dahiya.