In the IPL franchise, Delhi Capitals two players Marsh and Seifert have suffered a Covid test positive ahead of the game against Punjab Kings while DC head coach Ponting admitted that the preparation of his side has not been ideal.
Delhi Capitals two-player Mitchell Marsh and Tim Seifert have suffered a Covid test positive ahead of the game against Punjab Kings in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2022.
The destiny of the match was unclear till one hour before the scheduled start however, Delhi Capitals had enough players available for the game to go ahead at Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.
Ahead of the game, franchise head coach Ricky Ponting admitted that the preparation of his side has not been ideal but he hopes Rishabh Pant led the side to give it their all.
“Our preparation has not been perfect but sometimes those things can work well in your favor. I addressed the group before we trained last night regarding the two options we have,”
Ponting told host broadcaster Star Sports before the toss.
“We can drag our backsides around or we can take the positives out of it and realize we are playing in a really big tournament and we are part of a successful franchise who probably have the best cricket ahead of them going ahead in the tournament so we turn up today with a real well positive attitude,”
he added.
“Things have been a bit interrupted with Mitchell Marsh being down with Covid and our session yesterday was pushed back. We have to turn up with a positive attitude and we know we have to play well in this game,”
said Ponting.
Further talking about the clash against Punjab Kings, Ponting said:
“With games like this and tournaments like this, you want the leaders within your group to stand up and so far, in the tournament, David Warner’s leadership has been good. Rishabh Pant and Mustafizur Rahman have been good. What we have been doing is playing 35-36 overs of really good cricket but 3-4 bad overs is what has blown us out of water.”
“The tournament has been a stop-start so far for us. The players are very aware of the way I want them to play. It is what it is and we have to get on with it. I am pretty confident that we can put a good show tonight.”