[Picture] “Coming back much stronger” - Guru Randhawa pays a visit to Rishabh Pant ahead of IPL 2023

Guru Randhawa, a famous Indian singer, songwriter and composer, visited cricketer Rishabh Pant on Saturday (March 25) to enquire about his health as the latter recovers from injuries. He shared a picture on Instagram as the duo posed for the camera.

Randhawa captioned the post:

“So good to see my brother @rishabhpant coming back much stronger. Everyday growth. Love you, bro.”

For the uninitiated, Pant survived a major car accident while traveling from Delhi to Uttarakhand in December 2022. The left-hander suffered abrasion injuries to his back, forehead, and a ligament tear in his knee. He also hurt his right wrist, ankle, and toe.

The 25-year-old was admitted to a Dehradun hospital for a week before being airlifted to Mumbai to treat ligament tears. The Delhi Capitals captain is on his path to rehabilitation. Thus, the wicketkeeper-batter captain will not play in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023).

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“He is our leader, even if he is not with us” – Ricky Ponting on Rishabh Pant

DC head coach Ricky Ponting has called Rishabh Pant the ‘heart and soul’ of the team and wants the left-hander to be part of the dugout during IPL 2023.

Speaking to the media at an event, Pant said:

“In an ideal world for me, he would be sitting next to me in the dugout every match. But if that is not possible, we would like to make him part of the team in ways possible. We can have his number on our shirts or on caps. Just to make it clear that he is our leader, even if he is not with us.”

He continued:

"Pant is a huge loss and it does not matter who we bring in and we are still going to miss him. I am not going to joke or try and gloss over that fact and he is one of the best players in the world in all three formats.”

David Warner will lead DC in the absence of Rishabh Pant in IPL 2023. Meanwhile, Axar Patel has been appointed as vice-captain. The Delhi-based franchise will begin their campaign against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Saturday, April 1.

Delhi Capitals

Squad strength 25 players (Overseas 8)

Players bought - Ishant Sharma (INR 50 lakh), Phil Salt (INR 2 crore), Mukesh Kumar (INR 5.5 crore), Manish Pandey (INR 2.4 crore), Rilee Rossouw (INR 4.60 crore).

Players retained - Rishabh Pant (ruled out), David Warner, Prithvi Shaw, Ripal Patel, Rovman Powell, Sarfaraz Khan, Yash Dhull, Mitchell Marsh, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Anrich Nortje, Chetan Sakariya, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Khaleel Ahmed, Lungi Ngidi, Mustafizur Rahman, Aman Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, Praveen Dubey, Vicky Ostwal.