Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin looked set to continue as the captain of the Kings XI Punjab after co-owner Ness Wadia confirmed his presence in the franchise for IPL 2020. But a month later he was traded off to Delhi Capitals. And on Saturday, Ashwin revealed the 'intention' behind his move to Delhi-based franchise.
"I was coming to a franchise which had qualified for the playoffs last season, and had some very exciting players including Rishabh (Pant) and Prithvi (Shaw). I thought I could use my experience for the franchise and improve the team further. If I could help in strengthening the bowling, we could be the front runners for the title, I came with that intention," he said in an Instagram chat with the IPL franchise.
Ashwin was made the captain of Kings XI Punjab for the 2018 season and the franchise made a brilliant start to the campaign, but a poor run of form in the second half of the tournament resulted in their downfall and eventually failed to qualify for the playoffs. In 2019, KXIP finished sixth with six wins from 14 games.
Meanwhile, Ajinkya Rahane too was traded off to Delhi from Rajasthan Royals. He was the captain of the Royals before Smith was handed over the responsibility midway through the 2019 tournament.
