Making a comeback from a collarbone injury, T Natarajan appears to be in good form turning up with great performances for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2026. However, the left-arm pacer admits that the return from injury was not easy and he had to put in the hard yards before the start to the season.
The 35-year-old featured in only two matches last season and in IPL 2026 he is the go-to bowler for the Capitals in the death overs.
“Last year, I had a collarbone injury and it was a difficult phase for me. The team management, support staff and coaches kept motivating me throughout and guided me on the kind of training I needed to do,” Natarajan told reporters ahead of their match against Chennai Super Kings.
“I attended multiple camps in Delhi, Surat, Hyderabad and Dubai, and all of that helped me gain rhythm and confidence again. The support from everyone around me made my comeback easier,” he said
Natarajan, who was retained by DC for Rs 10.75 crore, picked three wickets against Lucknow Super Giants in their first match of IPL 2026.
“Coming back after injury is never easy, both mentally and physically. Every time I was doing well, unfortunately an injury came in the way,” he added.
“For the last six to seven months, I have worked extremely hard on my fitness and bowling. I have practised a lot to get back my yorkers and regain my rhythm. My confidence is high now and I’m very happy with how things are going.” Natarajan, a former Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer, said he practised with tennis balls to improve his execution.
“I have played tennis-ball cricket since childhood and that has helped me a lot. To improve my execution, I practised with tennis balls, weighted balls and red balls,” he said.
“I also discussed with Bhuvneshwar Kumar earlier, and he suggested practising with the red ball slowly to improve length control. That has helped me a lot in improving my bowling.” On evolving as a bowler over the years, he said: “Cricket has changed a lot and batters are much smarter now. They prepare very well and plan against bowlers.
“So for me, clarity of plans is the most important thing. I need to know what I want to execute in every situation. Even if I get hit, if my plans are clear, I back myself to deliver.”
