Ponting was with DC for seven years, guiding the team through many seasons, but they couldn’t win the IPL title.
The Delhi Capitals are looking to start fresh with a new coaching staff as Ricky Ponting moves to Punjab Kings as the franchise’s mentor.
Ponting was with DC for seven years, guiding the team through many seasons, but they couldn’t win the IPL title. India legend Sourav Ganguly also joined to help DC win their first trophy. However, both Ponting and Ganguly have now moved on to new roles, and DC is still waiting to win its first IPL title.
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Speaking on his Instagram Live, Mohammad Kaif, who also worked as part of DC’s coaching staff, believes that Ponting made several mistakes during his time with the team. Kaif feels that these errors led the franchise’s management to decide to part ways with Ponting and seek a new direction. With this change, the Delhi Capitals aim to turn a new page and build a stronger team moving forward.
“I think Ponting would himself admit he could have done better because the team we made, me, Ganguly…you won’t believe there were times we could think whom should we drop. There was no place for Ajinkya Rahane, Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, even Hetmyer.”
“Then when we went to the auction…this was Ganguly who decided and I must praise him for that. He said we have to back the Indian players. He talked to Shikhar Dhawan, after which that trade had happened with Hyderabad,” Kaif said in a video posted on his social media,” Kaif said.
Ponting Was Initially Against Dhawan’s Trade
Kaif mentioned the example of Shikhar Dhawan’s move from Sunrisers Hyderabad, which turned out to be a brilliant decision for the franchise. However, Kaif claimed that Ponting was initially against the trade, and it was Sourav Ganguly who persuaded him to approve it.
“Now we were stuck still thinking if we should make the trade, and it was Ganguly who convinced us that we needed him. Ponting did not agree. He felt his career was over, because it was right when he was dropped from the Test team. In fact, this thing was highlighted in the meeting that Dhawan is a trusted player who can score 500 runs in a season.”
“David Warner was in Hyderabad, and I feel he must have influenced Ponting against going with Dhawan. I feel he must have told Ponting that he no longer remains a great player. But Ganguly and Parth Jindal backed Dhawan and traded him, and the India batter proved us right because we had reached the final that season where he scored a lot of runs,” Kaif said.
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Shikhar Dhawan excelled during his three-year stint with Delhi Capitals, scoring over 500 runs each season and helping the team reach its first IPL final in 2020. He later joined Punjab Kings in 2022, leading the team until his retirement in 2024.
Delhi Capitals brought in David Warner during the 2022 mega auction. While the explosive Australian had a mixed tenure, he was released after the 2024 season as DC looked to rebuild.
Why DC Decided to Move On from Ponting
Kaif pointed out that Ponting, being a highly respected figure in the cricket world, is in the same league as icons like Sachin Tendulkar. If a franchise decides to move on from such a figure, it likely means they no longer see the same value in his game plans.
“The franchise owner must have felt Ponting no longer had good game plans. Now, Ponting is a huge name. He is in that Sachin Tendulkar category. Now, if a franchise tells him ‘thank you so much’ and parts ways, that means they feel that he is looking flat with his game plans,” Kaif added.
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