Rishabh Pant to be part of Delhi Capitals' IPL 2023 campaign; here’s how

Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting on Saturday spoke about wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who met with a horrific accident on the Delhi-Dehradun highway on December 30 last year. 

Calling him the "heart and soul" of the team, Ponting said at a team event that they will pay respect to him by wearing his shirt number on their shirts and caps. 

Ponting noted that Pant's absence has left a significant vacuum in the DC squad and they can’t even find his apt replacement. "Pant is a huge loss, and we are still going to miss him. He is one of the best players in the world in all three formats," added Ponting.

Even though Delhi Capitals has many options to replace Pant, including Phil Salt, Manish Pandey, Sarfaraz Khan, Luvnith Sisodia, Sheldon Jackson, Abishek Porel, and Vivek Singh, Ponting admitted that no one can replace Pant in terms of quality and offerings.

The IPL 2023 will begin on March 31 and end on May 28. The first match will be played between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The final will be played at the same venue on May 28.   

David Warner has been selected as the captain of the Delhi Capitals for the upcoming IPL season, replacing Rishabh Pant, who is currently undergoing rehab and recovery. Axar Patel, the team's all-rounder, has been named Vice Captain. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has also been named the franchise's Director of Cricket.

"He has been around the Australian team for a number of years. We wanted to pick him in the auction before our last campaign. Obviously he was the captain before and he has a whole lot of experience on the field,” Ponting said at the media briefing.

Warner will lead the Capitals for the second time. Earlier, he led the team in a couple of games during his last spell with the franchise, which lasted from 2009 to 2013. Sunrisers Hyderabad signed the opener in 2014, and he led the team to their first trophy in 2016. Warner is the fifth-most successful captain in terms of matches won. As captain, he has won 35 of 69 matches, lost 32, and drawn two.

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