IPL 2026: Delhi Capitals (DC) strongest playing XI

Fans and analysts have praised the Delhi Capitals (DC) for their efforts during the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction. After making many wise acquisitions on December 16, the team is now well-positioned to put up a strong fight for a postseason berth.

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It is anticipated that veteran Indian batsman KL Rahul would continue to open the batting for DC and provide the team with explosive beginnings. Because of his aggressive style, Ben Duckett is most likely to match up with him.

Depending on the situation, Delhi might start Nitish Rana at number three and either Tristan Stubbs or Axar Patel at number four. Axar can enter the game early with early wickets, or they can continue to play left and right combinations, all three of which are versatile.

Additionally, they have acquired David Miller for the middle order, who may be deployed as an impact player when necessary because Delhi's strongest playing XI only has three foreign players.

Ashutosh Sharma and Vipraj Nigam finally play the roles of finishers here, as they did an astounding job in the previous season. This makes this batting line-up one of the strongest and deadliest among all, but that is still not the best part of this team.

The team boasts of having the deadliest spin combination in the league, and that too does not come at the cost of disbalancing the playing XI. Kuldeep is probably one of the best spinners and the leader of the attack, with great assistance from Axar Patel, the leader of the side and Vipraj Nigam, who rose immensely the previous season.

The Delhi Capitals' game-winning squad in 2026 still heavily relies on pace bowling. Mitchell Starc, who has experience and the ability to take wickets with the new ball as well as in the end, is in charge of the pace attack. He has good assistance from Auqib Nabi Dar, whose participation demonstrates DC's faith in emerging Indian pace talent.

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The franchise paid 10 crores for T Natarajan during the previous season, but he was underutilised, which led to his inconsistent performance. Given that they decided to keep him this season, it makes sense to give him appropriate playing time from the beginning.

DC’s strongest playing 11 for IPL 2026

KL Rahul (wk), Ben Duckett, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Auqib Nabi, T Natarajan.

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