Kevin Pietersen joins IPL side as team mentor

South Africa-born former England captain Kevin Pietersen on Thursday joined Indian Premier League (IPL) team Delhi Capitals as mentor for the upcoming edition of the lucrative T20 tournament.

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The 44-year-old batting great joins a team he captained in 2014 and his last IPL season as a player came two years later.

Popular TV analyst

He has been a popular and outspoken TV analyst in recent seasons.

“I’m so excited to come home to Delhi! I have the fondest memories of my time with Delhi,” he wrote on social media.

“I love the city, I love the fans and I’ll do everything I can to support the franchise in our quest for the title in 2025!”

Pietersen captained England in 15 internationals including a two-Test series in India in 2008.

He redefined modern-day batting with his unorthodox and innovative approach.

Pietersen joins head coach Hemang Badani, assistant coach Matthew Mott, bowling coach Munaf Patel and director of cricket Venugopal Rao in the Delhi backroom staff.

Delhi still await their first title since the start of the IPL in 2008. They have once reached the final.

They ended sixth of the 10 teams last year and parted ways with skipper Rishabh Pant, who went to Lucknow Super Giants for a record 270 million rupees ($3.2 million) in the auction in November.

Delhi are yet to announce their skipper for the 18th edition of the IPL, which is scheduled to begin on March 22.

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