Young wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who will be leading the Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2021, will be facing India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) stalwart MS Dhoni in his first match as captain. Ahead of the encounter, Pant said that having players like Shikhar Dhawan, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ajinkya Rahane in the squad will help him grow as a captain and take the Delhi-based franchise forward in the tournament.

Even though the left-handed explosive batsman will be up against Dhoni, he feels like he can apply whatever he has learned from the World Cup-winning captain in the tie.

“My first match as captain will be against Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni). It will be a good experience for me as I have learned a lot from him. I’ll apply my own experience and learning from him,” Pant said.

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“I have been talking to the senior players like Shikhar Dhawan, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane about the fields we can set and other strategic decisions for the team,” Pant added.

“I have been talking to Ricky and our bowling coach James Hopes as well. There’s a good mix of seniors and juniors in our squad and I think with the help of Ricky, we can do something different this year.” Pant wants to keep things simple and believes that his peripheral vision as a keeper would help while leading the side from behind the stumps.

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“I haven’t thought about the fact that it’s my first match as captain in the IPL. I am just going to keep things simple and give my 100%. You get a good idea about setting fields as a wicketkeeper and now as captain, I will be making the changes in the field directly”.

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The Delhi Capitals vs Chennai Super Kings match will be played on April 10, 2021.