Delhi Capitals is one of the three IPL teams that has played in all 17 editions of the cash-rich league but never managed to win it. The Delhi-based franchise, which played under the leadership of Rishabh Pant in IPL 2024, finished sixth in the league table and failed to qualify for the IPL playoffs for the third season in a row. After being able to qualify for only one IPL final (in 2020) in 17 seasons, DC would like to come up with a big show next year and end the wait for the maiden IPL trophy.
But before the start of IPL 2025, the Delhi Capitals will have a chance to retain as many as six players from their IPL 2024 squad, and there are some exciting players to choose from.
Here’s a look at six players Delhi Capitals can retain ahead of IPL 2025 mega auctions:
Rishabh Pant: Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is DC’s most capped player (111) in IPL history, and he also holds the record for scoring most runs (3284) in the cash-rich league for the franchise. The 26-year-old left-handed batter, who made his IPL debut in 2016 for DC, was appointed as DC’s captain in 2021 and was retained for Rs 16 crore ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. The Roorkee-born Delhi-based cricketer is expected to be DC’s first retention ahead of IPL 2025 mega auctions as well.
Axar Patel: All-rounder Axar Patel has been associated with the Delhi Capitals since the 2019 season and has scored 967 runs in 82 IPL matches played so far in addition to taking 62 wickets for the franchise. In the last couple of years, Axar has raised his stocks by doing well for India as well as DC. He was also retained by DC ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction and is likely to continue with association with the franchise again.
Kuldeep Yadav: Delhi Capitals signed Kuldeep Yadav in the IPL 2022 mega auction for Rs 2 crore. In the last three years, the 29-year-old has impressed with his performances and accounted for the dismissal of 47 batters in 39 matches.
Jake Fraser-McGurk: DC signed Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk as a replacement of injured South African pacer Lungi Ngidi in IPL 2024, and the youngster made his mark in the maiden IPL season by scoring 330 runs for the Rishabh Pant-led side in just nine matches with a strike rate of 234.04. The 22-year-old is a tailor-made cricketer for T20s, and it is highly unlikely that DC will part ways with him.
Tristan Stubbs: South African cricketer Tristan Stubbs joined DC for Rs 50 lakh in the IPL 2024 auction. He played in all 14 matches for the Delhi-based franchise and scored 378 runs with an average of 54.00 and strike rate of 190.90. Apart from his aggressive batting, Stubbs is a brilliant fielder, can bowl as a part-time spinner, and keeps wickets as well.
Abhishek Porel (uncapped): Bengal’s wicketkeeper-batter Abhishek Porel played some impactful knocks for DC in IPL 2024, which is why he can be retained by the franchise as an uncapped player for Rs 4 crore. Apart from him, DC can consider Yash Dhull or Rasikh Salam for the sixth player slot.
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