"There was no other captaincy candidate left in this team" - Aakash Chopra on Delhi Capitals appointing David Warner as skipper

Aakash Chopra feels the Delhi Capitals (DC) had no other option but to appoint David Warner as their captain for IPL 2023.

With regular skipper Rishabh Pant ruled out of this year's edition of the league, the Capitals appointed Warner at the helm. They also named Axar Patel the veteran Australian opener's deputy for the upcoming season.

Reflecting on the development in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that Warner was the only viable option as skipper left in the Delhi Capitals' camp, elaborating:

"You will now see David Warner as the captain for the Delhi Capitals, which was almost a given, because if you don't have Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer left long back, there was no other captaincy candidate left in this team, to be very honest."

The former Indian opener pointed out that Warner had mixed returns as skipper for the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH), observing:

"Warner has already captained earlier in this league. He captained very well initially but was removed from captaincy in the end. He left the Hyderabad franchise and moved towards Delhi."

Chopra is unsure how long the newly-appointed skipper will be at the top of his game, explaining:

"It seems he is at the twilight of his career. His place in Tests is slightly 50-50 but he is still a force in white-ball cricket, so nobody is going to touch him. But we really don't know how much of his best is still ahead of him. He is still a gun player and will be leading the Delhi franchise."

Chopra highlighted that Warner has nothing to prove as a player as he has been one of the standout performers in the league's 15-year history. However, he added that the New South Welshman will want to prove himself as a skipper once again as the last captaincy episode was not good.

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"You need to have an Indian player in a big post" - Aakash Chopra on the Delhi Capitals appointing Axar Patel as vice-captain

Axar Patel's stature has grown in leaps and bounds in the last couple of years. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra believes the Delhi Capitals made a good call in appointing Axar Patel as David Warner's deputy, reasoning:

"Axar Patel has been interestingly appointed the vice-captain, which is again a good thing because his temperament has improved a lot, he has got a lot of confidence and is an experienced player. You need to have an Indian player in a big post."

Axar was one of four players retained by the Capitals ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. The spin-bowling all-rounder has scored 449 runs and picked up 40 wickets in the 54 games he has played for the franchise.