The reason why Rishabh Pant refused to captain Delhi in the Ranji Trophy

Wicket-keeper-batsman Rishabh PantHis kit bag and luggage have already arrived at the Delhi team hotel in Rajkot, marking his return to domestic cricket ahead of the match Ranji Trophy The match against Saurashtra, is scheduled to start on January 23. However, the star player refused to lead the Delhi team, with Ayush Badoni Continue as a leader.

Pant last played in the Ranji Trophy during the 2017/18 season, leading Delhi to the final against Vidarbha in Indore. Despite his efforts, including scores of 21 and 32 in the title match, Delhi lost by nine wickets. In that season, Pant amassed 315 runs in seven matches at an average of 35.00, with a top score of 99.

Delhi currently occupies fourth place in their group with 14 points after one win, one loss and three draws, and will be boosted by Pant’s presence as they aim to improve their ranking.

Why won’t Rishabh Pant lead Delhi?

According to a report by Cricbuzz, Pant was offered the captaincy of the team but chose to step down, stressing the importance of maintaining the current structure of the team. “He believed that it would not be appropriate to step in as captain only based on his experience as an international captain and an IPL franchise. He expressed confidence in the current captain (Aayush Badone) and coach (Sarandeep Singh) to continue the vision of the team. A source close to the development was quoted as saying to Cricbuzz.

Pant’s return to the Delhi team comes after a notable performance in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia, where he scored 255 runs in five matches across nine innings, at an average of 28.33 at a strike rate of 59.02. His contributions included a half-century and helped him finish sixth in the all-time list of the best players in the series.

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Homeland stars meet local teams

Meanwhile, Yashavi Jaiswal He returned to the Mumbai squad for training sessions ahead of the second phase of the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy. He was recently spotted during an open net session at the Bandra Kurla Complex ground. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma He skipped the last training session but was seen running at the same complex. This development comes ahead of Mumbai’s match against Jammu and Kashmir on January 23.

Shubman Gill He also confirmed his availability for Punjab’s Round 6 clash against Karnataka, which is scheduled to start on January 23 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

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