Delhi Capitals are likely to sign Bengal’s Abishek Porel as a replacement for the injured wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant ahead of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, as reported by a cricketing website.
Delhi Capitals will kickstart their IPL 2023 campaign against Lucknow Super Giants from April 1 onwards.
The signing of Porel, which has not yet been formally confirmed, follows several training matches at a week-long training camp in New Delhi.
In addition to being observed by the Capitals coaching staff, which is led by director of cricket Sourav Ganguly and head coach Ricky Ponting, Porel and three other uncapped wicketkeepers, Sheldon Jackson, Luvnith Sisodia, and Vivek Singh, have been put through a series of match simulation drills over the past week.
The Capitals’ gamble on Porel follows his first complete domestic cricket season with Bengal when he was impressed with his glove work but struggled to put up large runs across formats.
He scored 22 runs in his three games for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, including an undefeated knock of 20. In first-class cricket, he has marginally better stats, managing six half-centuries over 26 innings with a best of 73.
Porel could still be a backup option for wicketkeeping, as the team is eager to test Sarfaraz Khan at the position. Throughout the past three domestic seasons, Sarfaraz has been in excellent batting shape.
