Delhi Capitals announce DC Junior Cricket League for U-14 cricketers
Aiming to develop young cricketers in the nation's capital, the Delhi Capitals have decided to launch a new junior league. The tournament, titled the DC Junior Cricket League, will feature U-14 cricketers from Delhi and the National Capital Region's top 16 academies.
The organizers have preferred to have 40-overs-a-side matches for this competition. Four groups will feature four teams each, with every side playing three fixtures in the group stage.
The top two teams from each group will qualify for the quarterfinals. The games will take place from February 21 to March 6 at three venues across Delhi and NCR.
Confirming this development, the head of DC Academies, Jagrit Anand, said:
"The U-14 age group is a crucial one for any cricketer aspiring to play the sport professionally, but at the moment, it's a bit unstructured, and there are not too many opportunities. Our aim is to provide children in this age group a solid platform to showcase their talent."
The Delhi Capitals have gained enormous popularity in Indian cricket following the owners' decision to rebrand the franchise. Earlier, the Delhi Capitals were known as the Delhi Daredevils in the IPL. Despite being part of the competition since 2008, Delhi have not won a championship yet.
Can the Delhi Capitals end their IPL title drought in 2021?
As mentioned above, the Delhi Capitals have never won an IPL trophy. However, the franchise hasn't fared poorly every season. Last year, they finished as runners-up, while in 2019, they finished third behind the Chennai Super Kings and the Mumbai Indians.
Shreyas Iyer has done an incredible job as the team's captain. Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, and Kagiso Rabada have played a vital role in DC's success in the previous two seasons. It will be interesting to see if the Capitals can win their maiden title in 2021.