Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel credited his team’s sharp awareness and disciplined execution with the ball for setting up a comprehensive six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2026.
Reflecting on the performance, Axar said the team made the most of favourable new-ball conditions before finishing the chase with a crucial middle-order partnership. “The game finished early, though we were under pressure in the middle. The new ball was doing a bit, and our focus was on building one big partnership. Happy with the bowling effort,” he said after the match.
Delhi’s bowlers set the tone early, exploiting swing and seam movement effectively. Mukesh Kumar delivered an impressive spell in the powerplay, maintaining tight control and keeping Mitchell Marsh in check.
Axar himself struck a key blow by dismissing Aiden Markram with a skiddy delivery soon after conceding a six, helping reduce LSG to 48/2. The pressure mounted as Ayush Badoni fell to T Natarajan, while Lungi Ngidi produced a clever slower ball to dismiss Nicholas Pooran.
Delhi maintained control through the middle overs, with Marsh departing for 35 while attempting to attack Kuldeep Yadav. Debutant Mukul Choudhary showed brief promise but was undone by Kuldeep’s googly, while Abdul Samad fought with a 36 before falling to Natarajan.
A late collapse followed, with LSG adding just three runs for their remaining wickets. Ngidi and Natarajan led the bowling effort with three wickets each, while Kuldeep chipped in with two, restricting Lucknow to a below-par total.
Axar revealed that the team remained calm during the chase despite early setbacks. “During the strategic timeout, we told the players that just one good partnership could take us through. Both batters executed that perfectly,” he said.
That responsibility was taken up by Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs, who stitched together a match-winning 119-run stand. Rizvi, who initially struggled against the seamers, showed composure to settle in before shifting gears.
Promoted as an Impact Player ahead of options like Karun Nair and Ashutosh Sharma, Rizvi justified the decision with a composed yet aggressive knock. After a slow start, he capitalised on the limited spin available, attacking bowlers like Shahbaz Ahmed and Markram to swing momentum in Delhi’s favour.
He brought up his half-century off 37 balls and went on to play a decisive role in guiding DC home, underlining the team management’s faith in him and sealing a strong start to their IPL 2026 campaign.