Delhi Capitals (DC) will have a new captain in Axar Patel this season, and he’s got the backing of several of his team-mates leading into the season. Axar was retained by DC ahead of the mega auction for this season, and replaces Rishabh Pant – who went back into the auction – as captain.
“I think just having him in the team is a huge bonus. He’s one of the best players around at the moment,” Tristan Stubbs, who was also retained by DC, said. “He captained the game last year [against RCB when Pant was suspended for a slow over rate], and he was really calm out in the middle, made the bowlers feel really calm. So hopefully he can do that this year, and we can feed off his energy.”
Abishek Porel, another one of the four players DC retained (Kuldeep Yadav was the fourth), felt that Axar’s long run with DC would help him settle into the new role. Axar, has been representing DC since 2019, and has played 82 games for them so far.
“It’s great that Axar bhai will be leading the side. He has been playing for DC for three or four years [six years] now, so he understands the environment,” Porel said. “It’ll be good for us too that he’ll be there as a big brother. He’s quite funny off the field, but at the same time, just as focused on it. So I’m really excited to play under his captaincy, and hopefully, we’ll win the trophy.”
Axar being named DC captain comes months he was named India’s vice-captain in T20Is ahead of the five-match series against England at home in January. He also led his domestic team Gujarat during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2024-25.
“Axar has been around for a long time now, and he is going to be a great captain,” Karun Nair, one of Axar’s new team-mates at DC, said. “He is someone who knows all the facets of the game, and understands everyone’s situation and roles. He will be versatile like he is always. [I’m] looking forward to meet him, and know a lot of things.”
DC, who are yet to win the IPL, had finished sixth last season with seven wins and seven losses. This year, they start their campaign by hosting Lucknow Super Giants in Visakhapatnam on March 24. That will be the first of two home games they will be playing in Visakhapatnam, before they shift to Delhi for their remaining five home matches.
