Former Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting has spoken about why Prithvi Shaw was benched for most of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 games. He said the batsman should not have been an outlier and he was disappointed that he did not get the best out of the right-hander.

One of the most disappointing stories in Indian cricket has been that of young batsman Prithvi Shaw. From being touted as the next Sachin Tendulkar to failing to break into the Delhi Capitals’ starting XI in the IPL, his downfall has been one of the most heartbreaking stories, especially when other youngsters are on the rise.

Prithvi Shaw, who has been a part of Delhi Capitals since 2018, has not been able to take off in the last two seasons. Despite having such a high reputation, he could not play all the matches. The batsman was part of the playing XI for just 8 matches of the IPL 2024, but even in that, he could not set the stage on fire with the bat.

Prithvi Shaw, in the 8 matches, had a disappointing average of 24.75 and a strike rate of 163.64. He also did not feature regularly in the 2023 edition of the league. He played 8 matches in that season and had a disappointing average of 13.25.

Ricky Ponting, who coached Prithvi Shaw, said that the batsman has been one of the most skilled players but they could not find a place for him in the team. He highlighted how the batsman did not live up to what the team needed from him. Speaking to Cricbuzz, he explained:

“Prithvi Shaw should not be an isolated case. He should be someone who is in every team; first choice in most teams with the ability he has. He got the opportunity to represent India as a youngster, making a hundred on his Test debut. And as you say, halfway through this year, we couldn’t find a place for him in our DC team. So it’s disappointing for me as a coach not to be able to get certain players to improve and get the best out of them.

“But sometimes you can only give so much and you can only try so many times. When you feel like you’re not making players better and they’re not doing what you need for the team, then you have to look for other players who can do that for you. So it comes back to the player.”

He is still a very talented young player – Rick Ponting on Prithvi Shaw

Ricky Ponting further revealed that he had a lot of conversations with Prithvi Shaw and tried to make him a better cricketer. He is hopeful that the young batsman will work things out and become the best cricketer. He explained:

“With him in particular I’ve had a lot of talks, a lot of conversations to try and make him a better cricketer. I mean, he’s still a young man and a very talented young player. And I hope one day he’ll realise that and figure out what he needs to do to be the best cricketer he can be.”

Prithvi Shaw has played for India in all three formats. He scored a century on his Test debut, playing 5 Tests, six ODIs and one T20I.