Shikhar Dhawan confident of Delhi Capitals winning IPL 13

Ahead of the commencement of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Delhi Capitals batsman Shikhar Dhawan has exuded confidence in his side saying that "we will win the tournament this year".

"First five months I did not really think about cricket, it was just about making sure that we do not get the infection, once we were allowed to go out, I started training. I invested in my training and I used to visualise myself playing good cricket," Dhawan said in a press conference here on Sunday.

"As a team, we are looking forward to playing this IPL nicely, it is important to get together as a team, we have a balanced side, we are confident that we will win the tournament this year," he added.

Praising the team's captain, Shreyas Iyer, Dhawan said: "Shreyas did a good job as a captain in the last season as well, this year we have (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Ajinkya) Rahane as well, they are experienced campaigners, Shreyas has an open mind, he would be open to learning from them, I am confident that Shreyas would lead the team nicely this year as well."

Initially, the 13th edition of the IPL was slated to begin on March 29 but it was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, the tournament will take place in the UAE, starting from September 19.

IPL will be played across three venues -- Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah.

During the tournament, the players will have to follow several protocols laid down by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Dhawan said that BCCI has done a good job and the players have already been tested several times for COVID-19.

"I never thought for a moment that there was a risk of playing this tournament, I am confident about my health, we are following safety guidelines, we have been tested eight-nine times already for COVID-19, we are walking around with a badge/tracking device, BCCI has done a good job, it is a good thing that the tournament is going ahead in these testing times," he said.

( With inputs from ANI )