'Is Ponting there merely to sit?' - Atul Wassan questions role of foreign coaches in IPL

Former Indian cricketer Atul Wassan has criticised the gwoing trend of IPL franchises hiring foreign coaches. After retiring from playing, where he represented India in four Tests and nine ODIs before injuries cut short his career, Wassan has become a renowned cricket commentator.

Meanwhile, the poor performances of some IPL teams this season have started the debate around the value of marquee foreign coaching staff. Among those feeling the heat are Delhi Capitals, who have acquired the services of Australian legend Ricky Ponting as head coach despite the franchise's limited success over 16 IPL seasons.

Wassan did not mince words when asked about Delhi's coaching setup. “It is an injustice with Delhi, what Ricky Ponting is doing in the dugout, is he there merely to sit? They are giving a lot of money to the foreign coaches, so what use they are being here in IPL?” he told India News.

Also read: If Prithvi Shaw impresses everybody, we'll definitely consider him for selection: Ricky Ponting

What is their role?: Atul Wassan

He went on to question the roles of overseas experts hired by franchises. “Apart from that, the overseas experts they bring into their setup, what is their role, nobody is talking about this. By doing this, are you trying to look stronger in the dugout in comparison to your team on the ground? In the 16-year-long history of IPL, DC has reached the final only once in 2020” he added.

Lending support to Wassan's views, Rajkumar Sharma, childhood coach of star Indian batter Virat Kohli, said: “I agree with Atul, the IPL teams like to hire foreign coaches, but what are they getting out of all this.”

Also read: IPL 2024: Rishabh Pant scores first fifty since injury comeback

Under Ponting's coaching tenure, the Capitals have qualified for the finals only once, in the 2020 edition, when they lost to Mumbai Indians. DC registered their first victory of the 2024 season after defeating Chennai Super Kings by 20 runs.