IPL 2021: Rishabh Pant Not A Captaincy Option For Delhi Capitals Due To Lack Of Leadership Experience - Reports

Delhi Capitals (DC) were dealt a severe blow ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) season as their captain Shreyas Iyer was ruled out of the tournament due to a shoulder injury he suffered during the first ODI between India and England at Pune on March 23.

Iyer suffered a dislocation of the shoulder, which on further examination and scans, turned out to be serious enough for him to potentially undergo surgery and is expected to be out for 4-5 months. Now the DC management will be looking out for a new name as captain to replace him for the IPL 14.

R Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Ajinkya Rahane are some of the local Indian players in line for captaincy, while Steve Smith and Marcus Stoinis are the foreign options for Delhi Capitals for captaincy spot.

Rishabh Pant’s Lack Of Experience In Captaining A Team Could Go Against Him

Rishabh Pant is the front-runner for the captaincy job given that he is a local Delhi player, but a report from the Times of India, suggests, that Pant is on everyone’s mind as the top choice for the captain, given that he was being groomed for the past three years for a leadership position.

However, the report suggested that many in the Delhi Capitals team management are not in favor of Rishabh Pant becoming the DC captain, given his lack of experience as captaincy and leadership at any level.

“Pant is the first name that pops up in everyone’s mind. He is the hot property at the moment. But a few in the management pointed out that his lack of experience in captaining a team could go against him. Also, there’s thought that the added responsibility could hamper his form,” a source told TOI.

Though the DC think tank is yet to finalize a name, some of the members want Rishabh Pant to become captain, while many others want someone with more experience to become captain and lead the side in IPL 2021.

“There is no consensus on who should be captain yet. There’s a faction of the management which is convinced that Pant should assume charge and then there’s another which is keen to have an experienced captain,” the source added.

The DC management will now have a video conference with DC head coach Ricky Ponting on Friday to reach a consensus.

As for the experience, R Ashwin has led the Punjab Kings (PBKS) team for two seasons, Steve Smith has led the Rajasthan Royals and Rising Pune Supergiant, Ajinkya Rahane has also captained the Rajasthan outfit. Shikhar Dhawan, who was Iyer’s deputy in last IPL 2020, has previously captained the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

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