Ricky Ponting lauds Avesh Khan for his brilliant show against Rajasthan Royals

It was a disappointing day for the Delhi Capitals who went down to Rajasthan Royals by 3 wickets. Despite the loss, one man that drew massive applauds was DC’s pace sensation Avesh Khan who returned with figures of 3-32. He had a decent game against CSK as well and picked up 2 wickets for 23 runs.

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Former Australian skipper and Delhi Capitals head coach, Ricky Ponting heaped praises on the youngster and said that his stint with the Indian team ahead of the IPL 2021 has helped him improve his game.

“He has been ultra-impressive, pretty much from the first day that we arrived in our training camp. Physically, he looks a little bit better. He has lost a bit of weight from last season. He is definitely fitter and bowling faster. He has been able to maintain his line and lengths. Use of his slower balls and variations have been excellent so far. He spent some time with the Indian team in the five-six weeks leading into the IPL. Did a lot of bowling. That has really helped him coming here".

Ponting further said that Khan along with Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje makes a lethal pace combination. The Australian also admitted that the unavailability of left-arm spinner Axar Patel has disrupted the balance of the team. Patel was ruled out of the first few games of IPL after testing positive for COVID-19.

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“We are trying to pick what is the right team for conditions and oppositions every game. We made the two changes from game one to game two with (Kagiso) Rabada being available for selection for this game. He had to come straight back into the side. We are looking to get the right balance. At the moment, with Axar Patel not available for selection, the balance is out a little bit. We are trying to mix and match things a little bit. We also wanted to give Lalit Yadav an opportunity to show us what he is capable of in the middle order for the Delhi Capitals".

Talking about the match, Delhi could only post 147-8 in their innings. However, an inspirational bowling performance helped them defend the par score.