Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting, who has praised Rishabh Pant on various occasions, said that the newly appointed DC skipper is a team-man. He even compared him to modern-day legends.
Pant was given the charge of Delhi Capitals after regular skipper Shreyas Iyer was ruled out of IPL 2021 season due to a shoulder injury.
Highly impressed by Pant, Ponting said:
“The biggest trick that we need to get right is Pant’s batting position in this IPL, you want to involve him as early as well. Pant is like Virat Kohli or Kane Williamson, if you know he is there at the end, you are going to win more matches.”
Ponting acknowledged the fact that though Pant needs to work hard to hone his wicket-keeping skills, the southpaw has the right qualities to become India’s top choice for the next decade or so.
Talking to cricket.com.au, Ponting claimed that there will always be question marks on Pant’s keeping, but he works hard on his keeping, and his batting is brilliant. Ponting also claimed that he was mighty impressed with Pant’s performance behind the stumps on turning tracks in the series against England.
The Australian legend further added that if Pant’s keeping continues to improve, he could be India’s wicketkeeper-batsman for a long time to come.
“Brilliant bloke to have in your team, loves to be in the contest,”
Ponting said.
Pant has been in incredible form off late as he gave match-winning performances in the series against Australia and England. The left-handed batsman scored a tremendous hundred against England in the fourth Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium. He played a pivotal role in guiding the Indian team to a series victory.
In his first match as the skipper of Delhi Capitals, Pant guided his team to a winning start, beating MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
