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Delhi Capitals (DC) head coach Ricky Ponting has backed captain Rishabh Pant to do “something special” in their opening match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Pant will mark his return to competitive cricket on Saturday as DC face PBKS at the Mullanpur Stadium in Mohali. Pant had suffered a life-threatening car crash in December 2022, and the DC skipper has been out of action since then. However, the 26-year-old managed pull off a remarkable recovery during his rehab process.
Ahead of the game against PBKS, Ponting revealed that he had to forcefully drag Pant out of the nets a few times, adding that the DC skipper is ready to be unleashed.
“We had a week’s training in Vizag before coming here and trust me Rishabh is back and ready to play. He is batting and moving behind the stumps beautifully. Sometimes he bats too much and I have to drag him out of nets,” Ponting said on the eve of DC’s first match.
“I’ve seen where his game is at, and don’t be surprised if something special happens tomorrow. His attitude and smile and what he wants to do for the team is infectious. Everyone wants to be like Rishabh,” he added.
Coming back after a painstakingly long rehab following a horrific car crash in December, 2022, Pant said he was grateful to be back on the 22-yard strip.
“Jittery, nervous, excited…all of it, but at the same time, just happy, being able to come back to professional cricket. I’m just looking forward to playing my first game tomorrow,” Pant said ahead of his team’s first match of the season.
Pant, however, admitted that it will take time to get back to his old self and he wants to take one day at a time with extended batting sessions at the DC nets as that will give him a better chance to execute his wide range of strokes.
“Every time I take the field, it’s a different feeling altogether. I think, as a batter, as long as I can bat. It is better because the more I bat, I will be in a better position to execute shots, muscle memory is intact even though I haven’t played for nearly a year and half,” the swashbuckling batter said.
“But I have been playing since childhood, so it doesn’t go away that easily. So, the more I practice, the better chance I will give myself as a cricketer,” he added.
(With PTI Inputs)
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