Very happy to be appointed Delhi’s head coach, says K P Bhaskar
K P Bhaskar has stated that he is delighted to be appointed as Delhi’s head coach for the 2019/20 season. Bhaskar will serve alongside Virat Kohli’s childhood mentor Rajkumar Sharma as the bowling coach as per the announcement made by the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) on Thursday.
Despite the likes of Manoj Prabhakar, Hitesh Sharma, Shankar Saini, and N. S. Negi in the fray, the two-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) of Yashpal Sharma and Sunil Valson found Bhaskar’s credentials to the most impressive. Bhaskar had performed well as head coach when Delhi finished runner-up to Vidarbha in 2018 but was replaced by Mithun Manhas in the following season despite reapplying for the job. The team fared poorly and the DDCA fell back on Bhaskar for this season as Manhas did not apply for the job.
“I am very happy to be appointed as the Head coach. It would be nice to take Delhi forward, to make it a powerhouse of domestic cricket that consistently challenges and wins major domestic titles. I am looking forward to once again to work with the talented bunch of cricketers that we have. I am thankful to the CAC for giving me this opportunity,” Bhaskar said, reported Sportstar.
Bhaskar is known for handling a variety of assignments handed to him by the BCCI, including stints at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. Following the season with Delhi, he took over the challenge of guiding Uttarakhand in its first-class debut season last year. He delivered by ensuring Uttarakhand qualified for the knockout where it lost in the quarterfinals to Vidarbha, the eventual Ranji Trophy champion.
The DDCA also appointed Sharma, Delhi’s U-23 coach when it won the national title in 2018, also returns to the team after a season’s gap as bowling coach.Â
“I am really excited to be part of the coaching set up for the senior team. I am aware of the expectations that come along with me and I will work hard with the bowling unit to deliver results this season. I have worked closely with most Delhi boys when I was part of age-group teams and that would stand me in good stead,” Sharma said.
Earlier this week, Atul Wassan was named the chairman of the senior selection committee. Bhaskar, Sharma, and Wassan are all products of the iconic Delhi club Sonnet.