Watch: 'Humbled' Rishabh Pant thanks Delhi Capitals management after being appointed captain

Newly appointed Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper for IPL 2021, a 'humbled' Rishabh Pant took to social media to express his gratitude to the team management for trusting him with the responsibility.

In a 10-second clip shared on Twitter, the 23-year-old Pant thanked the IPL 2020 finalists for showing faith in him and said 'hopefully, we'll cross the line this year'. He shared the video along with the following caption:

Humbled at the opportunity to lead the franchise I've been part of for the past few years! Thank you @RickyPonting, the coaching staff, management, my teammates and the fans for your faith in me. @DelhiCapitals: Let's do this! #IPL2021

Humbled at the opportunity to lead the franchise I've been part of for the past few years! Thank you @RickyPonting , the coaching staff, management, my teammates and the fans for your faith in me. @DelhiCapitals : Let's do this! #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/zeais9AGIO

— Rishabh Pant (@RishabhPant17) March 31, 2021

Rishabh Pant was chosen to lead the Ricky Ponting-coached franchise after regular captain Shreyas Iyer was unfortunately ruled out of the tournament due to a shoulder injury.

Iyer led DC to their maiden IPL final last year, where his team went down to eventual champions Mumbai Indians by five wickets.

🚨 ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨 Rishabh Pant will be our Captain for #IPL2021 ✨@ShreyasIyer15 has been ruled out of the upcoming season following his injury in the #INDvENG series and @RishabhPant17 will lead the team in his absence 🧢#YehHaiNayiDilli

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) March 30, 2021

Will Rishabh Pant lead Delhi Capitals to their maiden IPL title?

Rishabh Pant has put on some extraordinary performances in international cricket over the last six months.

Most Runs in 2020-21 Season.(Australia+England Series).No Idea when did Kohli scored that many.But it was the season of Rishabh Pant.And start of his journey towards greatness. pic.twitter.com/5GIAQ89Aig

— Andy. (@WeBleedBlue007) March 29, 2021

The explosive left-hander was unstoppable and churned out one match-winning performance after another across different formats against Australia and England.

Although coach Ricky Ponting is 'convinced the captaincy will make Pant an even better player', his leadership credentials are untested as this will be the wicketkeeper-batsman's first such assignment.

Unfortunate that Shreyas will miss the tournament, but looking forward to seeing @RishabhPant17 grab his opportunity. It's well deserved for his recent performances and he's coming in with a lot of confidence. I'm convinced captaincy will make him an even better player. https://t.co/tVqMnLt1Er

— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) March 31, 2021

Rishabh Pant did not have a particularly good time with the bat in IPL 2020 as he could only cross fifty once, and finished the tournament with an unusually low strike-rate of 113.95.

However, with his form picking up over the past few months, Pant is expected to lead DC from the front and produce the kind of explosive knocks that made him a cult hero in 2018 and 2019.

Rishabh Pant's IPL journey:- Debuted in 2016 edition.- Scored 684 runs in 2018 edition.- Vice Captain of DC in IPL 2020.- Appointed as Captain of DC in IPL 2021.

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 30, 2021

Along with Ponting's inputs, Pant will look up to the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin (ex Punjab Kings captain), Ajinkya Rahane (ex Rajasthan Royals captain) and Steve Smith (ex RR captain) to guide him through the tough waters that arrive with the privilege of captainship.