Delhi Capitals are reportedly looking to appoint the former Indian cricketer Hemang Badani as their head coach for the IPL 2025 season. After removing the head coach Ricky Ponting in July, Delhi Capitals are looking at Indian coaching staff to end the team's silverware drought.
According to a report from the PTI, Badani has emerged as the leading contender to succeed Ponting for a hot seat in Delhi. Badani has previously worked with Sunrisers Hyderabad's coaching staff but has never been considered for a head coach role by any IPL team.
Badani, 47, famously led Chepauk Super Gillies to four Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) titles as a head coach. Most recently he held a fielding coach and scout role at the Sunrisers in the IPL 2023 and was a consultant for Jaffna Kings in the Lanka Premier League.
Meanwhile, another former star Munaf Patel is being considered as a bowling coach by the Capitals. Munaf retired from all forms of cricket in 2018 and played for Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and Gujarat Lions in the Indian Premier League.
The same report also adds that the Capitals are looking to retain only three cricketers ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. Captain Rishabh Pant and the spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel are three names the DC are looking to secure before the retention deadline on October 31.
The PTI adds that the franchise is looking to pick Rishabh as their first-choice retention for Rs 18 crore, the star all-rounder Axar Patel for Rs 14 crore and Kuldeep Yadav for Rs 11 crore. The franchise is also looking to use the Right to Match (RTM) cards in the player auction for the overseas stars Jake Fraser-McGurk and Tristan Stubbs.
Fraser-McGurk came into the squad as an injury replacement to Lungi Ngidi and took the IPL 2024 by storm. He scored 330 runs in just 9 innings at a strike rate of 234.04 and is likely to trigger a bidding war in the IPL 2025 auction if the Capitals release him on October 31.
