Rahul, Starc and Stubbs lead Delhi Capitals’ core

Delhi Capitals have released their full list of retained players for the IPL 2026 season, keeping a balanced group of batters, all-rounders, wicketkeepers and bowlers. The franchise enters the upcoming auction with Rs 21.8 crore in the purse and eight slots to fill, five of them overseas.

Ahead of the auction, Delhi completed two trade deals. Rajasthan Royals sent Nitish Rana to DC at his existing fee of Rs 4.2 crore, while DC moved South African all-rounder Donovan Ferreira to RR, with his fee revised from Rs 75 lakh to Rs 1 crore. Rana played 11 matches for RR last season, scoring 217 runs at an average of 21.70, mostly at number three. A two-time IPL winner, he previously lifted titles in 2017 and 2024. Ferreira, who debuted for RR in 2024, spent the 2025 season with Delhi before returning to his first IPL team.

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In the batting unit, DC have retained Tristan Stubbs, Sameer Rizvi, Karun Nair, Ferreira, Rana and Jake Fraser-McGurk. The wicketkeeping group continues with KL Rahul and Abhishek Porel, offering stability at the top and in the middle order.

The all-rounders’ core remains deep. Axar Patel continues as a key presence with his spin and batting. Aayush Badoni, Vicky Ostwal, Mahipal Lomror, Tripuranha Vijay, Ajay Mandal and Manav Suthar provide multiple options through different stages of a match.

Also Read: Mumbai Indians Retention List: Arjun Tendulkar traded out, Sherfane Rutherford signed — full list of released and retained players

The bowling attack has been kept intact. Kuldeep Yadav leads the spin department, while Mitchell Starc, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande and T Natarajan continue as the main pace options. Darshan Nalkande and Mohit Sharma add further experience and depth.

DC Retained Players

Batsmen: Tristan Stubbs, Sameer Rizvi, Karun Nair, Donovan Ferreira (traded), Nitish Rana (traded Rs 4.2 cr) , Jake Fraser-McGurk
Wicketkeepers: KL Rahul, Abhishek Porel
All-rounders: Axar Patel, Aayush Badoni, Vicky Ostwal, Mahipal Lomror, Tripuranha Vijay, Ajay Mandal, Manav Suthar
Bowlers: Kuldeep Yadav, Mitchell Starc, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande, T Natarajan, Darshan Nalkande, Mohit Sharma

Purse Remaining: Rs 21.8 crore
Slots Remaining: 8 (5 overseas)

With a steady structure across departments and funds available to strengthen weak areas, Delhi Capitals head into the IPL 2026 auction with the flexibility to refine their squad and build a more competitive unit for the new season.