Delhi Capitals (DC) sank to a new low in IPL 2026. After posting a massive 264 in a losing cause against PBKS, DC‘s batting crash landed and sunk into a new low. Yes, the pitch was a little challenging than the previous game, but such a collapse is just not expected from a team of DC’s calibre. They lost the game in the first 6 overs only and there was only one winner after that. It could have been worse, but 75 all out is not acceptable. We will try and analyse where DC went wrong last night.
Losing 6 wickets in the power play sealed the fate of the match
RCB won the toss and elected to bat first on a good-looking surface slightly on the drier side, but decent for batting. What followed was disastrous for DC. There was swing on offer early on and the RCB bowlers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood tore DC batting apart. The newcomer Sahil Parakh was dismissed second ball of the match to Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
Thereafter, Josh Hazlewood came and got rid of KL Rahul and Sameer Rizvi off consecutive balls. Tristan Stubbs and Axar Patel the captain followed suit as they fell in the third over to Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Nitish Rana also fell to Josh Hazlewood as DC were reduced to 8/6 in the 4th over. The game was as good as over as Impact Player Abishek Porel was roped in and alongside him now was David Miller. The lowest total of 49 made by RCB in 2017 was now in serious danger.
DC must thank their stars and Porel to show resistance and take DC out of this mess as his 30 made sure they at least got to 75 which is still a pathetic score, but one which could have been a lot worse. To put things into perspective, DC were 13/6 in 6 overs of power play, which is the lowest score in the power play in the history of IPL. The bowling was great and credit to Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood for their incisive first spell that blew this game away.
But DC batted with too much intent maybe getting carried away with shots and misreading the pitch. They did not respect the conditions on offer and suffered a collapse for the ages. Too many lose shots and gifting away wickets. No one withstood pressure apart from Porel. DC are hurting and somehow have to forget this batting performance if they are to make a mark this season and contest for the playoffs.
Change in the top order affected the balance of the DC team
DC made a tactical call ahead of this match. With the bowling not firing at all alongside Lungi Ngidi’s injury, DC felt playing two overseas seamers in Kyle Jamieson and Dushmantha Chameera while playing the two Protea batters Tristan Stubbs and David Miller. This meant opener Pathum Nissanka who was doing decently at the top alongside KL Rahul had to be dropped. Nissanka we agree did not set the world on fire with his performances, but was giving the team decent starts.
We get the reason for the change and there is no issue with that because combinations matter in the end. But when making the change, it was important DC brings someone who is a proven customer, tried and tested in the IPL or international cricket. But what DC did was bring in newcomer Sahil Parakh. Sahil might be talented and did well in domestic cricket, but this is a different kettle of fish. DC had other options like Abishek Porel himself who batted down the order yesterday.
They also had Karun Nair and Prithvi Shaw a bonafide opener for DC in the past. But DC decided to hand a debut to the youngster against a world class bowling line-up. We get the decision to reward youngsters, but common sense should have prevailed. Parakh lining up against Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood on a pitch that was swinging was asking for trouble. It proved as he fell for a silver duck. KL Rahul too fell and the innings was on a free fall.
We feel DC tactically got the selection of Parakh wrong and now since they have backed him, they should persist with him. But knowing the management, DC may again chop and change. This has been their problem and something that they seem not to be sorting out anytime soon. Planning needs to be proper which is never the case with the Capitals.
No intent of winning or competing sealed the fate of DC
DC never looked like competing in the match let alone winning it. The players and staff it seemed were resigned to their fate. There was no proper planning and it seemed like in the whole match they were going through the motions. The surprising aspect was how meekly they surrendered to RCB. Yes, it was a different pitch and the bowling was world class. But the batting from DC left a lot to be desired. There was lack of intent and too much pressure on them.
Losing 6 wickets in the power play does not amount to just good bowling. It also shows lack of application from the batters. Someone from the batting group should have shown grit and responsibility of weathering the storm. RCB had Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood firing. Had they weathered their storm, who knows they could have taken on the others. But there was no intent in doing that at all. It was a meek surrender.
It’s not the question of only KL Rahul taking responsibility. After all, how much will he do for the side? He did his bit against PBKS and was due for a failure. So, he failed. What about the other batters not taking responsibility? Similarly, when they were defending 75 with the ball in hand Axar Patel should have started the bowling. Not that it would have made any difference to the result, but one needs to play with the right intent.
The fast bowlers started bowling and after a while it was easy pickings for the batters. Axar came in after 5 overs, but the game was totally done there. Reluctance to take responsibility is something that is bothering Axar and DC. So, the intent is important, the end result is just a by product of it. No one knows how DC can turn things around for them. It looks really tough from here.
What Lies Ahead
So, RCB next will take on GT in Ahmedabad on Thursday night while DC travels to Jaipur to take on RR on May 1 i.e. Friday night. Tonight, it’s going to be the unbeaten side in the competition, Punjab Kings (PBKS) taking on RR in New Chandigarh. RR are in 4th place as we speak. So, hope for a better contested game later tonight.
Also Read:Â DC vs RCB: Josh Hazlewood & Bhuvneshwar Kumar Decimates DC