NEW DELHI: Former India cricketer Vijay Bharadwaj has joined Delhi Capitals as the head of the talent scout wing. The Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise is overhauling the entire backroom set-up and Bharadwaj will now track potential players throughout the year.
With the formalities now completed, Bharadwaj is likely to be in attendance for the trials by the franchise, which are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.The first round will happen in Hyderabad from today (October 23) and the next round is likely to take place in Mumbai next month.
The 49-year-old will work closely with Director of Cricket Venugopal Rao and head coach Hemang Badani in his new assignment. He was earlier associated with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru as their assistant coach for the first three seasons and has been juggling commentary, coaching and administrative roles since.
The Delhi Capitals talent scout wing desperately needed an overhaul and the franchise has been very keen on having individuals who track domestic cricket very closely, and can do the job throughout the year. They have had plenty of overseas coaches under head coach Ricky Ponting in the last few years but have preferred Indian names ahead of the new cycle which gets underway from the 2025 edition.
Munaf Patel, who is likely to be in the dugout as the bowling coach, has been tracking various T20 leagues in India and was spotted watching the Sher-E-Punjab T20 fixtures from the stands earlier this year.
DC have had some big names in the dugout but this cycle is certainly going to be different as the GMR Group, the co-owners who are going to call the shots for next two years, want a more hands-on approach rather than having individuals who switch off during the off-season.
“IPL is not just a two-month tournament. It needs planning, work and strategising throughout the year. There is so much cricket happening in and outside India and you can’t afford to switch off. Scouting, camps, trials, player development… so many things are at play and a franchise has to ensure they work 365 days a year to be on top,” says a source close to developments.
More developments are likely from the DC camp as they finalise their list of retentions ahead of the October 31 deadline, and there could be more additions to the backroom staff as well.
