Delhi Capitals to betray Axar Patel as captain ahead of IPL 2026? Report drops bombshell

Delhi Capitals (DC), just before the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), decided to appoint the left-arm Indian spin all-rounder, Axar Patel, as the new leader of the side. The veteran has been a crucial member of the franchise in balancing the squad and team selection with his four overs of bowling and the batting ability at the lower or middle order of the line-up.

Under Axar Patel’s leadership, Delhi finished in the fifth position in the points table. They won seven encounters out of 14 games at a net run rate of +0.011. It was a bizarre season for the franchise, which started its event with five wins in the first six games before facing four defeats in the five games towards the business end of the competition.

Axar clubbed 263 runs at a strike rate of 157.48 in 11 innings of the IPL 2025, with the best score of 43 runs. Along with that, he picked up just five wickets in 11 innings at an average of 57.60 and an economy rate of 8.47, with the best bowling figure of 2/19 in an innings.

Delhi Capitals likely to search for new captain to replace Axar Patel

The Capitals had several experienced players in the side, including the former two captains from the league, Faf du Plessis and KL Rahul. The latter contributed immensely with the bat, having accumulated 539 runs in 13 innings of the IPL 2025 at an average of 53.60 and a strike rate of 149.72, with three half-centuries and one century.

Axar was decent in the job, but to expect batting, bowling, and fielding at the grey areas of the ground, and then to lead the side was an external job for the left-arm spinner. On the other hand, Rahul could be an option, having crossed the 500-run mark in the last eight seasons of the event apart from 2023.

Faf can also be an option in this department. However, fitness could be a concern for the former Protea batter, who missed a big chunk of the previous season of the event due to injury. Else, they can look for some other batter for the position, which is unlikely to happen.