IPL 2026 Delhi Capitals (DC) Best Retained Squad Players List

A major revamp expected in our best predicted retained squad and players list for Delhi Capitals (DC) for IPL 2026. 

A major let-down with the performance, unstable management decisions, and tactical blunders in the playing 11 – that’s how you would define the performance of Delhi Capitals in IPL 2025. A team that won 5 of their first 7 matches were all set to qualify for the Playoffs with just 3 more wins from their remaining 7 matches. But decision-making issues with regards to batting-order and bowling combinations combined with some poor performance of the players meant Delhi Capitals failed to qualify for yet another playoffs. 

Sometimes poor decision-making can still get away with results if there are a few match-winners in the side. That’s exactly what happened with Delhi Capitals at the start as match-winning performances from KL Rahul, Axar Patel, Tristan Stubbs, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, etc., helped them win matches with individual contributions, but as a team, their team combination was far from being the best.  

One such example of their management’s unstable mindset was the use of T Natarajan. The team spent a humongous amount on a player they felt would help them in death bowling. Mind you, this is a bowler, who has been among wickets in the IPL. But the team doesn’t play him for 10 matches saying he doesn’t fit into their best combination. Suddenly when the team lost 3 in a row, they brought Natarajan into the team, only to remove him again the very next match. This is a prime example of how fragile the mindset is, and poor understanding of a player’s capability. 

What Next for Delhi Capitals?

All said and done, how does Delhi Capitals view their team from here as they prepare themselves for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026? Sure, the team has more than 6 months to decide which players they would like to retain, but having seen their players, and the type of players they played this year, we can sense what exactly must be running through their minds. So, let’s analyze the current team, and find out the best possible retained players list for Delhi Capitals (DC) for IPL 2025. 

Starting with the batters, the main question will be whether Delhi Capitals persist with Karun Nair and Faf du Plessis. While age isn’t on Faf’s side, Karun has been a disappointment once again this season except for that one knock. So, it will be interesting to see if Delhi will persist with these two. Ideally, Delhi shouldn’t as they would be better to get a youngster in the side. So, aside from Faf and Karun, Delhi will have only three good batters as retention, and those are Ashutosh Sharma, Jake Fraser-McGurk, and Sameer Rizvi.

In terms of Wicket-keepers, Delhi will keep all four of their existing wicket-keepers, Abhishek Porel, Donavan Ferreira, KL Rahul, and Tristan Stubbs. While KL Rahul, Abhishek Porel, and Tristan Stubbs have done well in the entire season, Donavan Ferreira didn’t get the opportunity with the bat. However, Donavan Ferreira is a good player, and can be a good backup to Tristan Stubbs. 

IPL 2026 Best Released Players List for Delhi Capitals (DC)

1. Karun Nair
2. Faf du Plessis (o)
3. Ajay Mandal
4. Darshan Nalkande
5. Madhav Tiwari
6. Manvanth Kumar
7. Tripurana Vijay
8. Dushmantha Chameera (o)
9. Mohit Sharma
10. T. Natarajan

In terms of All-rounders, Delhi Capitals should only retain two players, and those are Captain Axar Patel and Vipraj Nigam. These two played almost all the matches for Delhi, and have done well as well. Vipraj was the find of the season for Delhi, and given his dual abilities, they would like to see more of him in the coming years. Other than these two, Delhi might release the likes of Ajay Mandal, Darshan Nalkande, Madhav Tiwari, Tipurana Vijay, etc. 

In terms of bowling, Delhi Capitals, who bought T Natarajan for more than 10 Cr didn’t show any interest in playing him even when their primary bowlers were struggling. So, why would they want to retain him when they have 0 confidence in his abilities? So, expect DC to release Natarajan, and the likes of Dushmantha Chameera, and MOhit Sharma to search for better bowlers in the Auction.  

IPL 2026 Best Retained Squad and Players List for Delhi Capitals (DC)

Batters: Ashutosh Sharma, Jake Fraser-McGurk (o) & Sameer Rizvi

Wicket-keepers: Abhishek Porel, Donavan Ferreira (o), KL Rahul & Tristan Stubbs (o)

All-rounders Axar Patel, & Vipraj Nigam

Bowlers Kuldeep Yadav, Mitchell Starc (o) & Mukesh Kumar

So, that’s about the best retained players list for Delhi Capitals for IPL 2026. Overall, while we have been conservative in terms of how Delhi Capitals may perceive the upcoming edition of the IPL, expect them to retain around 15-16 players with a few youngsters like Ajay Mandal, Madhav Tiwari, Manvanth Kumar, Tripurana Vijay, also among probable retentions even as Delhi showed 0 interest in playing them this year. 

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