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Abhishek Porel can replace Pant in Delhi Capitals, Sarfaraz will do wicketkeeping

Talented Bengal wicket-keeper batsman Abhishek Porel is likely to replace the injured Rishabh Pant in Delhi Capitals in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League, starting on Friday. Pant was injured in a car accident last year and has been out of competitive cricket for at least a year. The Delhi team is considering an Indian option in his place.

An IPL source told PTI on condition of anonymity, “Delhi Capitals are likely to name Abhishek Porel as Rishabh’s replacement for the current season. He is only 21 years old and even after Rishabh returns, he can be groomed as a second option wicketkeeper under the guidance of Ricky Ponting and Sourav Ganguly.

Mumbai’s star batsman Sarfaraz Khan will be Delhi’s number one wicket-keeper batsman for at least the first few matches as Phil Salt is unlikely to be given the responsibility from the outset. “As of now, it looks like Sarfaraz will start (as wicketkeeper) against Lucknow Supergiants and if this experiment is successful, he will continue,” said the source. The problem with Salt could be his batting. Because the pitch of Ferozeshah Kotla ground is not conducive to aggressive batting.

The ball doesn’t come easily to the bat and he can be a problem against good spinners. Delhi Capitals had invited Bengal’s Porel, Karnataka wicketkeeper Lavneet Sisodia and Saurashtra legend Sheldon Jackson for trials in their first camp in Kolkata but nothing materialised. In Delhi, the team also included aggressive left-handed batsman and wicket-keeper Barinder Vivek Singh. Jackson is the biggest name among them but at the age of 36, he cannot bet on for the future.

Also, he has never been able to establish himself in the IPL over the years which goes against him. Vivek is also a part-time wicketkeeper and it may be difficult for a non-specialist wicketkeeper to face a stormy bowler like Enrich Norkhia. Sisodia impressed but it is believed that Porel impressed Ponting and Ganguly more in the trial matches.

Meanwhile, with Bangladesh taking a 2-0 winning lead in the ongoing three-match series against Ireland, Delhi are hopeful that the Bangladesh Cricket Board can release Mustafizur Rahman ahead of the team’s first match on April 1. The T20I series against Ireland will end on April 1 and will be followed by a one-off Test. Mustafizur, however, has retired from Test cricket to prolong his limited overs career.

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