In a pivotal clash at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Delhi Capitals have finally unleashed their 10.75 crore acquisition, T Natarajan, bringing him into the playing XI for the first time this season. The left-arm pacer replaces Mukesh Kumar as Delhi look to bolster their death-bowling arsenal against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Natarajan, who was one of the most expensive buys at the IPL 2025 auction, joins a formidable Capitals pace attack featuring Mitchell Starc and Dushmantha Chameera. With the league entering its business end, this move signals Delhi’s intent to go all-in as the playoff race tightens.
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T Natarajan has taken 67 wickets in 61 IPL innings at an average of 29.38, with best figures of 4 for 19, an economy rate of 8.83, and a strike rate of 19.9, including one four-wicket haul.
At the toss, Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins won the toss and opted to field first, backing his bowlers to exploit the Hyderabad pitch under lights.
Captains Speak
Axar Patel (Delhi Capitals captain):
“Would’ve fielded first as well, but now that we’re batting, we’ll look to get a solid score. The pitch looks good and shouldn’t change much. This is the business end, and every game is a must-win. We’re keeping the mood light in the camp, playing freely like we did at the start. The key is momentum. We’ve had different players step up, and we’re not reliant on one individual. We want to stay in games and not suffer big defeats, even if we lose. Our combo remains the same: three seamers and three spinners.”
Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad captain):
“We’ll bowl first. We’ve spoken about executing better, we haven’t had a complete game yet. It’s about doing the basics right. Our line-up has match-winners all the way down, and we bat deep. The fans have been incredible, and although results haven’t gone our way, the support has been buzzing. We want to feed off that energy and show intent on the field.”
Playing XIs
Delhi Capitals: Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Sachin Baby, Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins (c), Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari, Eshan Malinga
