Former India wicket-keeper Vijay Dahiya, who is serving as the Team Director of Purani Dilli 6 in the Delhi Premier League (DPL), hailed the concept of DPL, stating that there were some outstanding, noticeable performances from some of the players, and with talent scouts keeping a close eye on the tournament, it can open up a lot of opportunities for some of them in the longer run, adding that the tournament has the potential to become a great platform for the next generation of Indian cricket stars.
“I think it’s a phenomenal concept as far as white-ball cricket is concerned. I mean, a lot of people were part of the IPL side, or as somebody who’s playing or a part of a squad, or net bowlers after the first edition. And I see the same happening in the second edition as well. There was very good competition, noticeable performances by the boys, and there were a lot of talent scouts keeping an eye on this tournament. So yeah, in the longer picture, you know, you have what it takes to go to the next level. And people will definitely identify some kids from this tournament,” Dahiya told Sports Now, glowing in his praise for DPL 2025.
Although Purani Dilli 6 didn’t have the best of tournaments, finishing last on the points table, with two wins in ten matches, Udhav Mohan was more than impressive with the ball, picking up 12 wickets in 9 matches. Dahiya believes the road to stardom for young fast bowler Mohan must be measured and patient.
“I mean, there are a lot of young kids all over India in this age-group who are doing really well. He’s (Mohan) going to be part of the Indian U-19 team, which is, you know, going to be touring Australia. I won’t look that far, to be very honest. At the moment, I think he needs to go through the ranks. He needs to play age-group cricket first, and then find his feet in first-class cricket, break into the Delhi Ranji Trophy team, and then, you know, carry on from that journey,” he remarked.
“He has to go through the grind of first-class cricket. If he’s able to do that, then the second question will come. As far as the potential is concerned, I think everybody’s got that potential. That’s the reason why you’re playing here. But to last as a fast bowler is very, very important. And, it’s very important that your fitness level is high,” he further added.
Talking about Purani Dilli’s disappointing journey this season, the former India wicket-keeper believes that they lost the momentum after winning two back-to-back games, and in the shortest format of the game, it gets incredibly difficult to bring it back, once the momentum is lost.
“We lost the first game and then came back, winning back-to-back two games, and we thought we’ve had the momentum on our side. But there were crucial moments where we didn’t cash on. And that’s the beauty of this game and especially this format. You miss an opportunity and then that opportunity is gone. It’s very difficult to make a comeback in a shorter format. And that’s what has happened with us, so that we didn’t play smart cricket,” he concluded.
West Delhi Lions won the Delhi Premier League 2025 by six wickets, beating Central Delhi Kings in the final, played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Sunday, August 31, 2025.