The IPL 2026 is currently ongoing, with the playoffs fast approaching. This has been an incredibly tightly contested tournament so far, with 8 of the 10 teams still in contention to qualify for the final four spots of the tournament. However, there have been some teams that have been incredibly inconsistent throughout the course of the IPL 2026. Three of these sides have been Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Delhi Capitals (DC). This might put their captains, namely Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant and Axar Patel in danger.
According to a report by PTI, the jobs of Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant and Axar Patel as captains of KKR, LSG and DC might be in danger due to their poor performance in the IPL 2026. In fact, they might lose their jobs after the season gets over on May 31. While LSG have officially been eliminated, the chances of KKR and DC remain hanging by a thread, and they are also most likely to be eliminated come the end of the league stage.
Axar Patelhas been poor with both bat and ball this season. In 12 games, he has scored 100 runs and picked up 10 wickets, while bowling just 36 overs. With the management of DC set to change next season as part of the bi-yearly agreement, as it goes from the hands of GSR to JSW, they might not persist with Axar Patel.
"With Axar completely failing to prove his leadership worth and mostly being dependent on Hemang Badani and Venugopal Rao for decision-making, it will be a miracle if he retains captaincy next year," a source close to the proceedings told PTI.
"The entire coaching staff is also unlikely to be retained," the source added.
The decision to ignore Abhishek Porel.. not use an all-rounder like Madhav Tiwari, and throw in a youngster like Saahil Parakh in the deep end and expect him to deliver like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi might be the biggest reasons that his captaincy is being reconsidered.
As a player, however, he might be retained in the 2027 mega auction.
Rishabh Pant has not been in the best of form himself, scoring 251 runs forLSGat a strike rate of 138, which is not up to the standards of modern T20 cricket.
The PTI report states that his questionable captaincy decisions like continuously changing the batting order might be a big reason. He played Arshin Kulkarni as an opener, whose Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy strike-rate as an opener hovers around 134. He also pushed Himmat Singh in the lineup with a strike rate of 130. His insistence to play Ayush Badoni in the top order despite him not possessing the power game has also raised questions.
Ajinkya Rahane was appointed as the captain after the IPL 2024 mega auction, and it was largely a case of a person being made the skipper when no one else appropriate was available, according to the PTI report. The fact that his former Mumbai teammate Abhishek Nayar was the head coach also helped.
Source: India Latest News, Breaking News Today, Top News Headlines | Times Now
