Neutral Venues Wont Make a Difference to Delhi: Bhaskar Pillai

Delhi's new coach K Bhaskar Pillai believes playing at neutral venues won't make much of a difference to the team's Ranji Trophy campaign this season. "Most of the cricketers have played in most of the venues where Delhi are scheduled to play. They know the conditions and it won't make much of a difference to a team like Delhi," Bhaskar told TOI on Saturday (September 18).

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has initiated a move to stage all Ranji games at neutral venues in an effort to stem 'home' pitch tampering. Delhi will be playing two matches in Mumbai (Wankhede and CCI). Kerala, Baroda, Mohali, Kolkata and Chennai are some of the other venues which will host Delhi's matches.

"The main thing about playing at a neutral venue is to adapt to the situation. We expect the venues to be sporting tracks with decent grass cover. Teams which have depth don't need to worry much about neutral venues," he said.

Delhi's subpar showing in the tournament since winning the Ranji title in 2007-08 is uppermost on Bhaskar's mind. "There is a plenty of talent in Delhi and the squad looks quite strong. The average age is in the mid-twenties."