Former white-ball stalwart Yuvraj Singh is all set to join Delhi Capitals as its batting coach for the 2027 season, according to IPL sources tracking the development.
Yuvraj's Coaching Role
Yuvraj, who was India's player of the tournament in both the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 ODI World Cup, has worked as a personal mentor for current India skipper Shubman Gill and world's No. 1 ranked T20 batter Abhishek Sharma in recent years. Even Rishabh Pant had sought Yuvraj's advice when he underwent a slump in form.
The assignment with Delhi Capitals will be Yuvraj's first coaching assignment in the cash-rich league. Yuvraj played his last of 132 IPL matches in 2019 for Mumbai Indians before calling time on his competitive career.
Complete Overhaul of Coaching Staff
There will be a complete overhaul of the coaching staff in Delhi Capitals as JSW will be running the management for the 2027-28 seasons as per agreement. The trio comprising Venugopal Rao, Hemang Badani, and Munaf Patel, who were appointed by co-owners GMR, will make way for new support staff. Sourav Ganguly will take over as Director of Cricket, and Yuvraj will join as the batting coach.
As per the agreement, co-owners GMR and JSW take turns in managing the affairs of the men's team for two years. DC could not qualify for the play-offs in the last two seasons, and their planning, strategy, and choice of players at the auction left a lot to be desired.
It is understood that Ganguly, who has had a big influence on Yuvraj as his first international captain, wanted the flamboyant southpaw on board. While Ganguly as the Director of Cricket also looked after JSW's SA20 franchise Pretoria Capitals and also DC Women, Yuvraj will only have to look after the DC men's team.
Pant-Kuldeep Trade-Off
It will be interesting to see whether Rishabh Pant, who is all set to leave Lucknow Super Giants, can be traded by Delhi Capitals in lieu of one or two players from the existing set-up. As per sources, Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants might enter a trade-off where Kuldeep Yadav and Pant switch sides. It is understood that Pant will not be paid Rs 27 crore and might have to take a significant pay cut while Kuldeep's salary will remain at Rs 13.25 crore.
