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One of the perennial underachievers of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Delhi Capitals (DC) will look to have an impactful mega auction in a bid to win their maiden title. Over the years, the Capitals have fielded strong teams but have lacked the ideal balance. However, the team management and the owners will be hoping to build a winning team for the next season.
As per the latest regulations of the IPL, the franchises can retain a maximum of six players. They can be retained before the auction or can be brought back in the auctions via Right to Match (RTM). For a franchise like the Delhi Capitals that are yet to win the competition in 17 years, we might see some big changes.
Team owner Parth Jindal confirmed the fact that DC skipper Rishabh Pant will be retained without any iota of doubt. Speaking at an event in Hisar, Jindal also discussed the few other names who could be retained in the upcoming auction.
He didn't take the name of David Warner, which suggests that the franchise might look to regain the younger guns rather than someone who has retired from international cricket.
Having said that, here are the six players DC could retain for IPL 2025.
#6. Abishek Porel
With one uncapped player rule for retention, Abishek Porel looks like the ideal pick for this spot. A maximum of five capped players can be retained and the most decorated uncapped player in the last season for DC was undoubtedly Porel. He impressed behind the stumps and took a couple of exceptional catches.
His credentials as a batter kept improving as the 2024 tournament progressed. Porel looks like an organized batter who has all the strokes in the book.
He was the find of the tournament for DC last year. Abishek ended the tournament with 327 runs under his belt at an exceptional strike rate of 159.51. He could be the uncapped player retained by DC.
#5. Tristan Stubbs
Another young player who has made rapid strides in international cricket is Tristan Stubbs. Not only in the shortest format but Stubbs has been rated highly even as a Test batter in the South African circle.
On his day, Stubbs can actually decimate any bowling attack and that was on display during some of his knocks in the previous IPL. He is a belligerent striker of the ball and can access every side of the wicket. Stubbs was one of the key performers for South Africa in the T20 World Cup, taking them to the final of a World Cup for the first time in history.
He scored 378 runs in 14 IPL matches in 2024 at an incredible strike rate of 190.91. Given his reputation in this format, he could be a sure-shot pick for retention.
# 4. Jake Fraser-McGurk
Not many in the world can smack the ball like Fraser-McGurk does. He is one of a kind who can just keep on playing big shots. One of those modern-day batters who is not afraid of losing his wicket. The only chink in his armour might be his inability to rotate the strike in the middle overs.
It was the introduction of Fraser-McGurk in the playing XI during the IPL 2024 which changed the fortunes of the Capitals. He literally blazed his way through the powerplay and provided ideal starts for the Capitals. The brute nature of his batting makes him a viable option for retention. Fraser-McGurk scored 330 runs in nine matches at an astounding strike rate of 234.04.
#3. Axar Patel
It was Axar Patel’s vital contributions all through the T20 World Cup, which helped India win their second title. Axar’s rise to the top in the last couple of years has been nothing short of incredible. He has understood his game perfectly and his batting prowess has made him a regular feature in any T20 team he plays for.
Axar has been an integral member of the Capitals set up and it is highly unlikely they will release him before the auctions. He lends the ideal balance with his all-round abilities. Axar can single-handedly win matches both with bat or ball. He bagged 11 wickets in 14 games besides scoring 235 runs for the Capitals in the previous IPL.
#2 Kuldeep Yadav
Left-arm wrist spinners are a rarity in world cricket and like Rishabh Pant it's almost a certainty that Kuldeep will be retained by the Capitals.
Ever since working on his action and follow-through, Kuldeep has been a revelation for both India and the Delhi Capitals. He has the uncanny knack of producing magical deliveries time and again.
Kuldeep played a crucial part in the West Indies leg of the T20 World Cup where pitches were conducive for the spinners. Unlike the old Kuldeep where he would try and deceive batters with the lack of pace, today's Kuldeep has developed into a lynchpin of the side. He bagged 16 crucial wickets in 11 games during the 2024 IPL and will be eager to continue weaving his magic.
#1 Rishabh Pant
There was no doubt that Rishabh would be retained by the Capitals, and Parth Jindal's confirmation is the icing on the cake. Pant, who missed the 2023 season due to a life-threatening road accident in December 2022, made an incredible return last year and took the IPL by storm.
He looked a bit rusty but if you look at his record and the audacity with which he played his strokes, it was Rishabh Pant of the old. The T20 World Cup was just another feather in his cap for a player who had just returned to the game after a long gap.
What was more startling was his wicket-keeping which looked compact and solid. He was the leading run scorer for DC in the 2024 IPL with 446 runs to his name. The Capitals has been devoid of an IPL trophy and the year 2025 could turn out to be the breakthrough year for them.
