Delhi Capitals (DC) simply cannot buy a win in IPL 2026 as they lost another game this season. This is their 5th defeat at home and 7th defeat overall. They simply cannot win at their home ground barring the MI game which they won very early in the tournament. They were beaten fair and square by a resurgent KKR side in all facets of the game. DC never competed after the initial phase as KKR notched up their 4th consecutive win to keep their hopes alive. DC are not theoretically out but for all practical purposes, the campaign is over.
There were loads of areas where DC were found wanting and we will analyse them for you here.
Losing the plot post power play dented DC’s progress
DC lost the toss and were asked to bat first by KKR. The home side got off to a solid start in the power play courtesy of Pathum Nissanka who fires in the first 6 overs. KL Rahul also going going and got a start but fell inside the first 6 overs. Nissanka carried DC forward and gave them a good start as the home side reached 55/1 in 6 overs and were in a decent position to get a substantial total on the board. But KKR’s strength is the middle overs and they were on fire last night.
Things unravelled very quickly in the middle overs as the spin trio of Anukul Roy, Varun Chakaravarthy and Sunil Narine applied the choke on the Capitals batters. The Capitals could not quite weather the storm and wilted under pressure. From being in a solid position, Capitals collapsed as the run rate slowed down as well with regular loss of wickets. This was the main factor. In this middle phase, they lost Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi cheaply; Pathum Nissanka after scoring his half-century and Tristan Stubbs as well.
From 55/1 in 6 overs, the home side crumbled to 89/5 in 10.5 overs. Ashutosh Sharma and Axar Patel played Test cricket thereafter, as runs did not come at all. In the end, after the middle overs phase, DC were 98/5 in 15 overs. The Capitals managed to score 43 runs in 9 overs for the loss of 4 wickets. In a phase between overs 11-15, the Capitals barely managed 11 runs. There was good bowling and lack of intent by DC batters to put pressure on KKR.
If they want to end the season on a high, DC needs to approach the game better and play a lot better than they are now. It seems there is no intent to play. Yes, KKR bowled well and credit to them, but these returns going at less than run a ball in middle phase is largely unacceptable. Ashutosh improved and ended with a flourish that allowed 142 to be put on the board, but that was never going to be enough.
Inability to stop Finn Allen seals the fate of the match
After posting a below par score, DC needed early wickets to make a match out of this contest. While they got rid of Rahane in a fortunate matter for them and Raghuvanshi as well to reduce the team to 31/2, they couldn’t stop the storm that was about to hit them. It was the Finn Allen show as he decimated the proud Delhi bowling attack and tore them into pieces. DC did not know what hit them as Allen came out all guns blazing and scored most of the runs in his superlative innings.
The DC bowlers barring Axar Patel, were all over the place. There was no line and length as such and all of them went the distance. Cameron Green played the perfect role of a second fiddle player. But the story was about Allen and the impact he made as an impact player. The likes of Mukesh Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Vipraj Nigam, went the distance last night despite Axar bowling very well. There was no respite as he completed his ton in 47 balls and got the win in 14.2 overs.
DC lacked cohesion and collaboration yesterday. They need to pull up their socks in the upcoming games. They need to also play the right team in order to get the results. So many chopping and changing does not help any team. Even after 11 games, they do not know their ideal playing combination, and preparations and stuff and they claim that they have a great team on paper. But nothing is won on paper. To salvage the season, they need to play their best possible XI in remaining games.
Kuldeep Yadav’s declining form a concern for DC going ahead
Another important aspect to take note is the fact that Kuldeep Yadav has had an indifferent season so far. He has not been the wicket-taker we expect him to be, and has gone for plenty of runs. Yesterday, he was dropped from the XI, but featured in the Impact Players list. But the chinaman left-arm spinner made zero Impact for the team and more for the opposition as he was taken to the cleaners by Finn Allen in particular.
While in the first over, he gave away 10 runs, he started to give more in his second over. The concern has been how easily the sixes were hit by Finn Allen. It was too many slot balls from a man lacking in confidence. Allen took full advantage of it and deposited them 10 rows back. Kuldeep was very expensive and went for 41 in 3 overs. Axar bowled well but Vipraj Nigam went for 34 in 2 overs. The spinners of KKR outbowled DC spinners with regards to keeping things under control.
It was mayhem last night but Kuldeep has picked up just 7 wickets in the tournament and he is going at 11 runs per over on an average. This is not the Kuldeep Yadav we know. For Delhi to regain form, Kuldeep needs to improve his bowling by leaps and bounds and come back stronger in the upcoming games. Delhi may not qualify for playoffs, but it’s important to end the season well and have a happy dressing room. At the moment, it’s all doom and gloom.
What Lies Ahead
So, KKR has got important points and have climbed to 7th in the table with 9 points from 10 games. DC are in 8th place with 8 points from 11 games. They are all but out of the tournament while KKR still in with a chance for playoffs. KKR next faces RCB in Raipur on May 13th while DC travels to Dharamsala to face PBKS on Monday night. Later today we have 4th vs 5th clashing as RR are hosting GT in Jaipur. Both teams have 6 wins in 10 games with NRR separating both of them. It’s a big blockbuster clash tonight.
We shall see who comes out on top in this clash later tonight.
Also Read: DC vs KKR: Finn Allen’s Blazing Ton Decimates DC