NEWS
Follow UsThe inaugural Delhi Premier League (DPL) is all set to begin on August 17 (Saturday) and the six-team competition will feature a host of big Indian players from Delhi, including the likes of Rishabh Pant, Harshit Rana and Ishant Sharma.
Among the big names slated to feature in the competition is 24-year-old Ayush Badoni, a regular in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) franchise.
At 24, Badoni already has 42 IPL appearances to his name and is considered one of the most exciting young batters in the country.
The right-hander was the top pick for the South Delhi Superstars in the DPL draft, and he believes that the tournament will prove to be like a ‘mini IPL’ because of the exposure it will give to all the players involved.
"The Delhi Premier League will offer great exposure for players. For me, it will be like a mini IPL. Playing matches like these always boosts confidence; it will give me and the Delhi cricketers excellent exposure,” Badoni said.
Badoni believes that the tournament will not just be ultra-competitive, but also exciting and entertaining due to the inherently aggressive nature of Delhi cricketers.
"Delhi players are known for their aggressive cricket. So, the DPL will be very competitive and fun to watch for cricket followers,” Badoni said.
While the 24-year-old will unquestionably be looking to make a mark by proving to be the standout performer in the competition, he also has a subquest in his mind.
That is going toe-to-toe against one of his good friends, Purani Dilli 6’s Ishant Sharma, whom he’s promised to take down at the event.
"What excites me most about the league is playing against Ishant Sharma,” Badoni said.
“We always have this banter that he’ll get me out, and I tell him I’ll hit him for sixes, so playing against him will be fun," he added.
Badoni’s side, the South Delhi Superstars, is owned by former India opener Shikhar Dhawan.
When asked about Dhawan's involvement, Badoni said, "After the player draft, Shikhar bhai contacted me, and we’ve been regularly chatting about the team and our preparations.
"He is very confident with the team we have, and the environment is pretty relaxed. We’re looking forward to playing and lifting the DPL trophy.”
Introduced by the Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA), the DPL is scheduled to take place from 17th August to 8th September 2024, at the Shri Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. The competition will feature six teams — South Delhi Superstars, East Delhi Riders, Central Delhi Kings, North Delhi Strikers, West Delhi Lions, and Purani Dilli 6.
Men's Delhi Premier League squads
South Delhi Superstars
Ayush Badoni, Kuldip Yadav, Priyansh Arya, Sumit Mathur, Divij Mehra, Kunwar Bidhuri, Digvesh Rathi, Tejaswi Dahiya, Raghav Singh, Saurabh Deswal, Sarthak Ray, Lakshay Sehrawat, Tarun Bisht, Shubham Dubey, Vision Panchal, Dhruv Singh, Mayank Gupta, Anshuman Hooda, Anindo Naharay, Deepanshu Gulia
East Delhi Riders
Anuj Rawat, Simarjeet Singh, Himmat Singh, Himanshu Chauhan, Harsh Tyagi, Vaibhav Sharma, Mayank Rawat, Samarth Seth, Pranav Pant, Sujal Singh, Hardik Sharma, Raunak Waghela, Agrim Sharma, Shantanu Yadav, Bhagwan Singh, Ansh Choudhary, Sagar Khatri, Shivam Kumar Tripathi, Rishabh Rana, Lakshaya Sangwan
Central Delhi Kings
Yash Dhull, Prince Choudhary, Hiten Dalal, Jonty Sidhu, Lakshay Thareja, Yogesh Sharma, Money Grewar, Keshav Dabas, Shaurya Malik, Saurav Dagar, Aryan Rana, Siddhant Bansal, Rajneesh Dadar, Sumit Kumar, Kaushal Suman, Deepesh Balyan, Vishant Bhati, Dhruv Kaushik, Ajay Gulia
North Delhi Strikers
Harshit Rana, Suyash Sharma, Pranshu Vijayran, Vaibhav Kandpal, Kshitiz Sharma, Vaibhav Rawal, Yash Dabas, Pranav Rajvanshi, Manan Bhardwaj, Yash Bhatia, Yatish Singh, Aman Bharti, Yajas Sharma, Sarthak Ranjan, Anirudh Choudhary, Shivam, Yatharth Singh, Sidhhartha Solanki, Dhruv Chauhan, Yuvraj Rathi
West Delhi Lions
Hrithik Shokeen, Navdeep Saini, Dev Lakra, Deepak Punia, Shivank Vashisth, Akhil Chaudhary, Ayush Doseja, Krish Yadav, Anmol Sharma, Yugal Saini, Ankit Rajesh Kumar, Vivek Yadav, Aryan Dalal, Masab Alam, Ekansh Dobal, Shivam Gupta, Yogesh Kumar, Suryakant Chauhan, Tishant Dabla, Abrahim Ahmad Masoodi
Purani Dilli 6
Lalit Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Arpit Rana, Shivam Sharma, Prince Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Mayank Gusain, Sanat Sangwan, Ankit Bhadana, Yug Gupta, Keshav Dalal, Ayush Singh, Kush Nagpal, Sumit Chhikara, Arnav Bugga, Vansh Bedi, Manjeet, Yash Bhardawaj, Sambhav Sharma, Laxman
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