Rishabh Pant understands the game very well and his extra responsibility as captain will be a motivating factor for him in this IPL, believes Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting.
“I think extra responsibility is going to sit really well with Rishabh. He’s that sort of a person who likes the responsibility, wants to be the main man and wants to be the leader.
“We’ll help him through, but honestly, I don’t think he’s going to need much help at all,” Ponting, who attended his first training session with the Capitals on Sunday, was quoted as saying by a release from the franchise.
The coaching staff and senior pros of the team will be giving Pant much-needed support in whatever way they can, Ponting assured. “If we can get most of the talking with Rishabh about his captaincy done leading into the first game, then we don’t have to worry about it as the tournament starts.
“The last thing you want is to be overloading the captain with all sorts of information once the tournament is underway. It’s a big part of my job and that of other coaches and senior players’ to get behind Rishabh and help him where they need to. Not only during training, but during matches as well,” Ponting emphasised.
According to Ponting, the India wicketkeeper-batsman’s performances in the last few months have been nothing short of breathtaking.
“When he got back into the Test squad in Australia, I actually made a comment before a ball was bowled in the second Test match that this would be the unearthing of a 15-year Test player for India.”
The Maharashtra government, meanwhile, cleared the decks for the IPL to take place in Mumbai, allowing teams to practice after 8pm and travel to their respective hotels during the night curfew.