After Delhi Capitals slumped to a 47-run defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL 2026 match on Tuesday, DC skipper Axar Patel blamed the side’s poor fielding for the loss and said it was “an off day” on the field.
SRH put in to bat were powered by an excellent knock by Abhishek Sharma, who scored a century off just 47 balls and remained unbeaten on 135 off 68 deliveries to help his side post 242 for 2 in 20 overs.
“When a batter is batting like this, the coach and captain have to accept that even leadership cannot stop such innings. I was telling the bowlers the same thing — if you execute your plans and still get hit for good shots, there is nothing much you can do,” Axar Patel said after the match. “This should be treated as an off day and forgotten.”
While Abhishek grabbed all the spotlight, SRH were just as sharp with the ball. Eshan Malinga was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with an impressive 4 for 32 in his four overs. He was well supported by Sakib Hussain, Dilshan Madushanka and Harsh Dubey, as they kept the pressure on DC throughout the chase.
Even after the big loss, Axar Patel felt Delhi had their chances in the game. He admitted that missed opportunities in the field cost them the match.
“The run-out and the catch we missed – had we taken those, we could have controlled things better,” he said.
“Fielding is something that is fully in your control. Taking catches and effecting run-outs are areas where you can support your bowlers. That is where we could have done better.”
Axar pointed out a couple of moments that really hurt DC in the game. One came when Abhishek was close to his fifty, his slowest in the IPL. He tried to sneak in a second run, and although the throw was right on target, KL Rahul couldn’t collect it cleanly. Later, Abhishek got another lifeline when he was dropped off T Natarajan’s bowling.
Axar’s decision to use Nitish Rana as an allrounder instead of giving Auqib Nabi a chance also didn’t quite work out. Rana gave away 55 runs in his four overs. He did try to make up for it with a fighting half-century during the chase, but by then it was too late to claw back into the game.
After this tough loss, DC will head back home to take on the unbeaten Punjab Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on April 25. On the other hand, SRH will travel to the Sawai Mansingh Stadium to face Rajasthan Royals the same day, looking to keep their winning run going.
