Even as the Governing Council of the Indian Premier League (IPL) prepares to announce two new franchises for the forthcoming edition of the T20 extravaganza, Delhi Daredevils prepares to take fresh stock of its ammunition.
In the shake-up aimed to give the team a fresh image, Daredevils is likely to give the coaching reins to a new face in place of Gary Kirsten of South Africa and also find a role for Zaheer Khan as a coach-cum-player. The left-arm speedster is reportedly preparing for his farewell season in competitive cricket.
Kirsten, India’s coach when it won the 2011 World Cup, has had a miserable run with the Daredevils, which finished last in the 2014 IPL and seventh out of eight in the 2015 edition. Kirsten, who had promised to improve the state of Daredevils, had conceded at one point that he found managing a franchise team difficult.
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GMR Sports, owner of Delhi Daredevils, may also be scouting for a new bowling coach. Alfonso Thomas had replaced Eric Simons but Daredevils is expected to overhaul the support staff following the team’s poor showing. Simons and Kirsten had followed Greg Shipperd as the head coach of the team.
Daredevils had roped in West Indian great Viv Richards as batting consultant in 2013 but there was hardly any change in the status of the team.