“Rishabh became better since MS Dhoni stopped playing” - Sourav Ganguly
Delhi Capitals director of cricket Sourav Ganguly has admitted that the franchise will miss captain and keeper-batter Rishabh Pant in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2023 season. He, however, asserted that Pant’s absence is an opportunity for someone else to step up.
The 25-year-old Pant is unavailable for IPL 2023, as he's recuperating from multiple injuries sustained in a car accident in December last year. In the absence of the regular captain, veteran Australian opener David Warner is leading the side.
DC’s IPL 2023 campaign got off to a disappointing start as they went down to the Lucknow Super Giants by 50 runs in their opening game. Delhi will next face Gujarat Titans (GT) at home on Tuesday, April 4. At a press conference ahead of the game, Ganguly opened up on Pant’s absence, saying:
“Obviously the team will miss Rishabh, but this is an opportunity for others to step up. We will miss him (Rishabh) for the season as players like (Jasprit) Bumrah, Rishabh and Shreyas are not replaceable in franchise tournaments and best are distributed to all teams.
“I see this as an opportunity for someone to become better because Rishabh became better since MS Dhoni stopped playing. That’s the way players are produced. You see (Shubman) Gill getting better, Rutu (Ruturaj Gaikwad) playing well, so it’s an opportunity. Rishabh will be missed but most important is his recovery.”
Set to chase a target of 194 against Lucknow in their opener, Delhi were restricted to 143-9, with Mark Wood claiming 5-14.
“Poor guy has just kept for 20 overs” - Sourav Ganguly on Sarfaraz Khan
In Pant’s absence, Sarfaraz Khan kept wickets against LSG. Asked if the Mumbai batter could last the whole season as a keeper-batter, Ganguly smiled and replied:
“It’s a good question you have asked, and you will see tomorrow. Game has changed, as majority of teams look for keepers who can bat. Because that becomes an all rounder position. Sarfaraz has kept in Hazare Trophy. Poor guy has just kept for 20 overs, and we can’t pass a judgement on him so quickly and basic thought is as we don’t have Rishabh (Pant) who is a batter and a keeper.”
Citing the example of prolific keeper-batters in other IPL franchises, the former India captain added:
“You have KL (Rahul) and Pooran keeping for LSG, Dhoni for CSK, and all other teams have keepers who contribute with the bat. You try options and because of that, you got KL Rahul; you tried with Pooran. I did with (Rahul) Dravid when I was skipper, and that trend keeps continuing and hope that you get that extra batting option.”
Meanwhile, Ganguly also confirmed that South African fast bowler Anrich Nortje will be available for DC for their second game on Tuesday.