There was no bigger advertisement for the Delhi Premier League (DPL) in its inaugural season than Priyansh Arya’s soaring success. The opening batter’s 608 runs in 10 innings for South Delhi Superstarz, including six sixes in an over, acted as the springboard for Punjab Kings to shell out ₹3.8 crore in the IPL auction for his services. The 23-year-old southpaw delivered a high return on investment in his maiden IPL season, scoring 475 runs in Punjab’s runner-up finish.
Having done all that, it is only natural that Priyansh’s return for the second season of the DPL, which gets underway on August 2, will garner a lot more eyeballs. He will feature for Outer Delhi Warriors, one of two new franchises in this year’s DPL.
Asked whether there is greater pressure to perform this season, Priyansh was just as uncluttered with his response as he is with the bat in hand. “The pressure is as much as I want to take on myself. If you can keep things simple, it will be beneficial,” Priyansh told The Hindu on Wednesday.
While Priyansh’s ability to back his naturally attacking instinct is one of his strengths, he believes there is more to his batting now than just aggression.
“You have to play according to the situation. I have learnt that from the IPL,” he said. “You can’t keep hitting, you have to play as per the match circumstances. There is more maturity in my game now because of the IPL.”
Parthiv roped in as mentor
Outer Delhi Warriors has roped in former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel as mentor. The 40-year-old, who retired from all formats in 2020, also serves as assistant coach for Gujarat Titans in the IPL.