Bhubaneswar, March 27 -- Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has backed Prithvi Shaw to open the innings for Delhi Capitals, stressing that the youngster needs a clearly defined role to succeed.

Shaw has rejoined the Delhi setup after a year away from the IPL, during which he revived his form in domestic cricket. Turning out for Maharashtra, he enjoyed a prolific Ranji Trophy season, amassing 537 runs in just seven matches. He followed it up with a solid outing in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, scoring 183 runs at a strike rate above 160.

Delhi already have KL Rahul as one of their openers, but the second slot remains undecided after Ben Duckett pulled out. Pathum Nissanka, Abishek Porel and Shaw are currently in contention for that pos...