Huge boost for Delhi Capitals as Rishabh Pant eyes comeback in IPL 2024

In positive and happy news for cricket fans and the Delhi Capitals (DC) team, Rishabh Pant is all set to make his comeback in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. The flamboyant wicketkeeper batter was sidelined following a fatal car accident in December 2022. He has shown great signs of recovery after multiple surgeries and as per reports, the 26-year-old is likely to return to competitive cricket next month.

A report published by Cricbuzz revealed that the Indian Cricket Board and DC have indicated that Pant is poised to feature in the upcoming edition of IPL, which is expected to start on March 22. The latest reports emerged after the southpaw played his first full game since the horrific car accident. On Tuesday (February 20), he played in a warm-up game in Alur near Bengaluru.

Pant is currently undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Sources close to the development confirmed that his mobility is not hindered and he can run and bat with the same agility and freedom as before the accident.

This also leads to confirmation that DC will not get the complete services of Pant. The Uttarakhand cricketer will not be doing wicket-keeping duties but will play as a pure batter and captain instead. In his absence, the franchise needs to find a good replacement to stand behind the stumps. Tristan Stubbs, Shai Hope, Kumar Kushagra and Abhishek Porel are the available options for them.

Indian Premier League set to begin on March 22: League chairman confirms 

Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Arun Dhumal on Tuesday confirmed that the 17th edition of the cash-rich league will begin on March 22. He added the entire tournament will be held in India. The main reason why the schedule for the upcoming season has not been revealed yet is that the elections are likely to be held in April and May.

“We are looking at a March 22 start for the tournament. We are working closely with the government agencies and we will first release the initial schedule. The entire tournament will be held in India,” said Dhumal.

“We don’t want to be in a situation where we announce the full IPL schedule and then the security agency informs us that they won’t be available to provide security for the specific venue games. So we thought let’s wait and announce only the first few games scheduled. We will announce the complete schedule once we get a clear picture of which state will be holding elections on specific dates,” he added.