Delhi Capitals Lock in KL Rahul as Opener to End Top-Order Instability
Delhi Capitals have made a clear call on their batting approach for IPL 2026, confirming that KL Rahul will be given a fixed role as an opener in a bid to bring stability at the top. Speaking ahead of their season opener, head coach Hemang Badani and director of cricket Venugopal Rao admitted that constant changes in the opening combination hurt the side last year. Delhi experimented heavily in IPL 2025, trying as many as seven different opening pairs and making frequent tweaks that disrupted their rhythm. The season began with Faf du Plessis alongside Jake Fraser-McGurk, but inconsistent performances—especially from Fraser-McGurk forced the team to reshuffle repeatedly. Players like Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, and Rahul himself were all tried at the top, leading to instability and a lack of strong starts. That constant chopping and changing often left the middle order under pressure, with too much to recover in the later stages of the innings. Badani emphasized that in modern T20 cricket, strong opening partnerships are critical to success, and Delhi is now aiming to build continuity around Rahul. Rahul’s inclusion at the top is backed by his improved white-ball form. After being released by Lucknow Super Giants following IPL 2024, where the franchise brought in Rishabh Pant for a record fee, he joined Delhi and gradually moved up the order. Over the past 18 months, Rahul has worked on expanding his power-hitting range, and the results were evident last season. He scored 539 runs in IPL 2025 at a strike rate of 150, his most aggressive and effective campaign in recent years. With Rahul now locked in as opener, Delhi’s focus shifts to finding the right partner for him. Options include Pathum Nissanka, Abishek Porel, and Prithvi Shaw, as the team looks to finally settle on a combination that can provide consistent starts at the top.
Srikkanth Urges Mumbai Indians to Hand Captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav, Says ‘Hardik Pandya Should Step Aside’
Former India captain and ex-chief selector Kris Srikkanth has stirred the captaincy debate at the Mumbai Indians by backing Suryakumar Yadav to take over from Hardik Pandya ahead of IPL 2026. Pandya, who replaced Rohit Sharma after his high-profile move from the Gujarat Titans in 2024, has faced a turbulent run as a leader. Mumbai finished at the bottom of the table in its first season and, although it reached the playoffs in 2025, its campaign ended in the Eliminator. His appointment also drew backlash from sections of fans, with some still backing Rohit to continue. Despite acknowledging Pandya’s credentials, Srikkanth made it clear that Suryakumar’s recent success gives him the edge. He said: “It’s a funny situation. Two to three weeks ago, Suryakumar Yadav won the World Cup as a captain in India. Two years back, Rohit Sharma won it as captain. Personally, I like Hardik Pandya a lot. He is a fantastic cricketer, a fantastic person. He is a very good captain also. He won the title for the Gujarat Titans. But, this, I think, is an internal policy. They need to sort this out. From the outside, the obvious choice seems to be Suryakumar Yadav. He is on a winning run.” Srikkanth also urged the franchise to resolve the matter internally through discussions involving key figures. “They have to come together, meet again – the team owners, the upper-level management have to meet Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik, and say ‘Surya, you lead this year’. We will have to wait and see.” “They can appoint Surya as captain any time, it’s not necessary they have to do it right now.” He pointed out the unique dynamic within the group, where Pandya has played under multiple successful leaders. “It’s funny because the same Hardik played under Rohit and won the T20 World Cup for India. He did the same under Suryakumar this year.” Finally, Srikkanth emphasized that Pandya himself could be the key to resolving any leadership tension. “Hardik Pandya should go on to say, ‘I am stepping aside. Let Surya himself lead. He has been the T20 World Cup-winning captain. So, if Hardik himself says this, things will be resolved. I think it’s Hardik who has to go and say this.” “If at all, there is an issue in the leadership group, the best solution to it would be Hardik putting his hand up and saying, ‘Let Surya lead’.” With IPL 2026 set to begin on March 28, the Mumbai Indians will be eager to avoid their recent pattern of slow starts. Alongside the captaincy question, Rohit’s role as a batter will also be under the spotlight as he looks to maintain form and extend his international career toward the 2027 World Cup.
