In a surprise move, Delhi Capitals have decided Axar Patel as their next captain for the upcoming Indian Premier League season. Although the franchise is yet to be made official, reports claim that Axar is the new captain.
The Capitals had different options for the role of captain. KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis were seen as candidates for the role given their previous experience. However, the franchise decided to invest in Axar, who was a top cricketer for them.
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Axar Patel is set to be the next captain of Delhi Capitals
According to ANI, a top source in Delhi Capitals management has confirmed that Axar Patel will be the next captain of the team. Axar will lead Delhi Capitals in IPL 2025 which will be a big step in his career.
Breakdown:
So, it has been clarified by Delhi Capitals top management sources. Axar Patel will lead Delhi this year @IPL @DelhiCapitals
— vipul kashyap (@kashyapvipul) January 16, 2025
Axar has previous experience of leading Delhi Capitals in the absence of Rishabh Pant. He has also led Gujarat in recent domestic tournaments like Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Adding to this, Axar was recently named India’s vice-captain in the upcoming T20I series at home against England. The left-arm all-rounder is the stand-in for Suryakumar Yadav, India’s designated T20I captain.
Delhi Capitals retained four players this year and Axar was one of them. He was their highest retention with 16.50 million INR. Along with him, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs and Abishek Porel are the other players they retained.
Axar has so far played 150 IPL matches and picked up 123 wickets at an average of 30.55 and an economy rate of 7.28. He has improved considerably as a batsman over the years. He scored 1653 runs at a strike rate of 130.88.
Dinesh Karthik confirms Axar Patel as DC’s next captain
While speaking on Cricbuzz’s HeyCB, Dinesh Karthik revealed his thoughts on Axar being India’s vice-captain in the T20Is against England. Karthik confirmed Axar as the next DC captain and called it a good opportunity for his leadership.
“I really don’t know. I don’t know why he (Hardik) was deprived of the post of vice-captain. I see no reason for that. They did well. They won in the bilateral that he was the vice-captain. He has no idea,” said Karthik.
“But for Axar Patel, all the best. Good opportunity for him. Thirdly, he will also captain Delhi Capitals. So this is a good opportunity for him to lead and show the way. He has been doing that for Gujarat too, so we wish him all the best good luck,” he added.
KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis will play as specialist batsmen
The appointment of Axar Patel means that KL Rahul will play as a pure striker for Delhi Capitals. Rahul, who captained Lucknow Super Giants last season, was signed by the Capitals for ₹14 crore this season.
Faf du Plessis, who captained Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2024, will now also play as a pure batsman. Du Plessis was signed by Capitals for INR 2 crore in the IPL 2025 auction.
