IPL 2021: Hope to grow as a unit with Ponting, says DC pacer Nortje

Delhi Capitals (DC) pacer Anrich Nortje said on Friday that he hopes DC grow "as a unit" under head coach Ricky Ponting.

Nortje, who has been with DC since the 2020 edition, is looking to face a tough challenge from Rajasthan Royals (RR) when the two sides meet at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Saturday (Sept. 25) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

"We'll have to quickly assess the conditions in Abu Dhabi and see what we need to do. It's not going to be an easy game and the heat will be a major factor as well. Hopefully, we can just control our skills and focus on what we need to do. It's going to be a very good challenge for us and I am really looking forward to it," said the 27-year-old told DC's media on the eve of the match.

DC are coming off a comfortable eight-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), while RR clinched a close two-run victory over Punjab Kings (PBKS).

Nortje, who was the Player of the Match in DC's triumph over SRH in Dubai, heaped praise on Ponting, saying he enjoys his chats with the former Australia captain and wants to learn from him as much as possible.

"It's great having Ricky Ponting in our camp. I love his chats and he breaks things down very nicely and makes everything easy to understand. He's quite clear on what he wants. I am trying to learn as much as possible from him. We enjoy working with him and hopefully, we can grow as a unit with him," the Proteas bowler added further.

Nortje, who recorded the top eight fastest deliveries of the IPL 2021 season in only one match with the fastest being 151.71 km/ h, went on to add that he doesn't search for high speed on the field. "I don't think about bowling speeds on the field but I do think about it when I am doing my strength training. High speed is not something I search for on the field. I just try to hit the right lengths while bowling during a game," said Nortje.

In the same interview with DC's media, Nortje was asked if he has shared some tricks with young fast bowler Avesh Khan. To which, the South African responded," Some of us have been looking at how Avesh is landing his yorkers and how he has been going about things. He has been so good for us. It was especially nice to see him land his yorkers in the first half of the season in India. It's been so nice to see him progress as a bowler. All in all, he has got a lot of skill and I think he has got a bright future ahead of him."

Having played 17 matches in his IPL career so far, Nortje has picked up 24 wickets, out of which 22 had come in the 2020 edition.