We Will Have To Start Afresh: Delhi Capitals Assistant Coach Ajay Ratra

Delhi Capitals assistant coach Ajay Ratra said the Rishabh Pant-led franchise will start on a fresh note when they begin the second phase of the IPL 2021.

Capitals are currently on the top of the points table with six wins out of eight matches and will be chasing their elusive IPL title after the news of Shreyas Iyer’s availability was confirmed last month.

Currently, the Capitals are in the United Arab Emirates preparing in a practice camp ahead of the season resumption. Ratra believes the squad has sufficient time to get back into the rhythm for the second half of the tournament.

“It’s a different season altogether, generally it happens in full flow, and we had good momentum in the first half. Now that it’s happening after a break, so we will have to start afresh, and that’s why our franchise has organized this camp a little early,” Ratra said in a Delhi Capitals release.

“We do have sufficient time to get back into the rhythm we had in the first half of the competition, and fortunately, most of our players have been playing international cricket,” he added.

We have been spending more time with our domestic players: Ajay Ratra

Skipper Rishabh Pant is currently with the Indian team in England playing Test series against England whereas South Africa bowling pair of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje are playing ODI series in Sri Lanka.

Ratra said that the young players are making the best out of the camp and the assistant coach is hopeful for them to regain their form back.

“However, as I said before, we still have time, and most of our core players are playing international cricket, so they might be already in a good rhythm,” Ratra asserted.

“Whereas, those who are coming from a long break, are utilising this camp. We have been spending more time with our domestic players, and there are good facilities here, so we will hopefully find our rhythm soon,” he added.

We have been in touch with Ricky Ponting and James Hopes: Ajay Ratra

Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting and bowling coach James Hopes are yet to join the squad and will soon be with them ahead of the tournament. Ratra said the entire coaching staff is in contact with Ponting and they often discuss different plans and tactics.

“Yes, we have been in touch with Ricky and Hopes. We do zoom calls with Delhi Capitals management regularly, and everyone from the coaching staff attends it, including our strength and conditioning coach Rajinikanth Sivagnanam, physios Dhananjay Kaushik and Patrick Farhart.”

“We usually discuss the kind of practice regimes we need to set. Also, when this camp started Pravin Bhai (Pravin Amre) presented the whole plan to Ricky and all the other coaches. Similarly, I shared fielding plans for this camp with everyone,” Ratra concluded.

Delhi Capitals will play their first game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on September 22.

Also Read: IPL 2021: Delhi Capitals (DC) Squad, Schedule, Updated Time And Venue

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