Axar Patel has been appointed captain of Delhi Capitals (DC) for IPL 2025. Axar Patel has been with DC since 2019 and was their top retention for INR 16.50 crore ahead of the mega auction last November. While his captaincy experience isn’t extensive, Axar Patel was named India’s T20I vice-captain in January this year.
Delhi Capitals have named all-rounder Axar Patel as their new captain ahead of the 2025 Indian Premier League season. The announcement came on Friday after intense speculations over the successor to Rishabh Pant, who was bought by Lucknow Super Giants during the 2025 auction.
Delhi Capitals retained Axar Patel for IPL 2025 season
With DC successfully bidding for KL Rahul in the same auction, speculations were rife over the captaincy spot; however, DC have put faith in the all-rounder from Gujarat, who has been with the franchise since 2019. Axar Patel was one of the four players retained by the franchise ahead of the 2025 auction, alongside Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs, and Abhishek Porel.
DC retained Axar Patel for INR 18 crore. The 31-year-old emerged as one of the top-performing players for the franchise across the six seasons; in the 82 matches he has played for the Capitals, Patel has scored 967 runs and picked up 62 wickets at an impressive economy of 7.09. Throughout this time, Axar Patel also became a mainstay in Team India across all formats.
Axar Patel , 31, has led his state team Gujarat in 23 matches across formats, most recently in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2024-25. He captained DC in one IPL match last year – a must-win fixture that they lost to RCB to miss out on the playoffs – when Rishabh Pant was serving a ban for a slow over-rate.
With Pant’s exit from the DC franchise ahead of the mega auction, Axar was their most experienced player. He’s played 82 games for them across six seasons; last year he scored 235 runs at an average of nearly 30 and took 11 wickets with an economy rate of 7.65.
Axar Patel grateful to Delhi Capitals for giving him the captaincy role
Axar Patel is grateful to Delhi Capitals for giving him the captaincy role and has thanked the franchise for the same.
“It is my absolute honour to captain the Delhi Capitals, and I’m deeply grateful to our owners and support staff for placing their faith in me,” Axar said in a DC statement.
“I’ve grown as a cricketer and a human being during my time here at the Capitals, and I feel ready and confident to lead this side going forward.
“Our coaches and scouts have done a superb job at the mega auction by putting together a balanced and robust squad which has tremendous potential. We have plenty of leaders in the group, which is also very helpful for me, and I can’t wait to join the team as we look forward to a very successful season for the Capitals, backed by the immense love and support of our fans.”
The squad has KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis, who have both led other IPL teams in the past, and Mitchell Starc among the senior international players.
“We are delighted to appoint Axar as the Delhi Capitals captain. He has been an integral part of the Capitals family since 2019 and embodies the values that this team is built on,” DC chairman Kiran Kumar Grandhi said
“This decision reflects the natural progression for him as a leader – from being our vice-captain for two seasons to now leading the team, he has always stepped up to the occasion for us. Axar has the full support of our coaching staff and the experienced leadership group, and I wish him the very best for this new role which I am confident he will excel in.”
DC co-owner Parth Jindal said, “I have witnessed Axar’s progression as a cricketer and a leader first-hand at the Delhi Capitals,” said.
“Having personally picked Axar in 2019, my relationship with him is one that goes beyond cricket. Having seen him as the vice-captain of the team over the last two years, it is safe to say that he is a much-loved character in the dressing room and is someone who I am sure will motivate the players in the squad.
“From being an economical spinner who had an immediate impact when he came onto bowl, Axar has blossomed into a brilliant, mature cricketer whose all-round prowess was on full display in India’s T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy winning campaigns recently. I wish him good luck as he starts a new innings in his cricketing journey.
With seniors like KL Rahul, Faf du Plessis and Mitchell Starc being part of our leadership group, I believe this is the start of something special for the Delhi Capitals.”
Axar Patel comes into this IPL season having played an important role in India’s triumphant Champions Trophy campaign. Axar took five wickets with an economy rate of 4.35 and made vital contributions batting at No. 5 in the tournament.
Of the IPL’s original eight franchises, DC are one of three – along with Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru – to have never won a title. They finished sixth last season, having won and lost seven games each. This year, Axar will work with a new team management at DC, comprising Hemang Badani (head coach), Venugopal Rao (director of cricket) and Matthew Mott (assistant coach). They begin their IPL 2025 campaign by hosting LSG in Visakhapatnam on March 24.
With DC announcing Axar, all five teams that needed a new captain after the mega auction have named their leaders: RCB will be led by Rajat Patidar, Kolkata Knight Riders by Ajinkya Rahane, Lucknow Super Giants by Rishabh Pant, and Punjab Kings by Shreyas Iyer.
Delhi Capitals will kick-start their IPL 2025 campaign in Visakhapatnam on March 24 against Lucknow Super Giants, led by DC’s former skipper, Rishabh Pant. The Capitals are yet to win an IPL title in 17 seasons, and with Axar, as well as past IPL skippers KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis in the squad, the franchise will be aiming for a successful outing in 2025.