Delhi Capitals IPL 2026 Retention Drama: Harry Brook’s Purse, Faf du Plessis Exit & Natarajan in Spotlight

As the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 Retention deadline gets closed, franchises are taking tough decisions for the upcoming IPL 2026 season. Delhi Capitals (DC) are likely to release some of the big players like Harry Brook and Faf du Plessis. However, there is uncertainty over T. Natarajan and Harry Brook.

Delhi Capitals are expected to retain their reliable core, which includes Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, and Tristan Stubbs. All these players were exceptional in the last edition, especially KL Rahul and Axar Patel, who led the team from the front.

However, Delhi Capitals finished at 5th spot in the IPL 2025 Points Table; they were able to win 7 games and lost six matches. Delhi will be looking to play better cricket in the upcoming season. They have to work on different areas to stand out against strong teams like Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians.

Harry Brook Ban and Purse Drama:

Harry Brook was bought by Delhi Capitals for Rs. 6.25 crore, but he pulled out of the season before the tournament started, which violated BCCI rules on players' participation.  Therefore, Brook has a two-year IPL ban, which means DC not only lose overseas slots but also a huge purse.

Faf du Plessis Exit:

As per the reports, South African star batter Faf du Plessis is likely to be released by the franchise ahead of the IPL 2026 mini auction. Faf played decent cricket in the last edition, but still, DC is planning to release him to get some young talents who can be beneficial in the long-term.

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T. Natarajan’s future uncertainty:

T. Natarajan didn’t play the most games in the last edition due to injury. He is known for his death over bowling, but he leaks lots of runs, which might lead DC to release him and take some quality pacers who can take wickets but also be economical.

Delhi Capitals Released Players 2026 [Expected]

Jake Fraser-McGurk, T. Natarajan, Karun Nair, Mohit Sharma, Faf du Plessis, Donovan Ferreira, Ajay Mandal, Manvanth Kumar, Tripurana Vijay.

Delhi Capitals Retained Players 2026 [Expected]

Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs, Abishek Porel, Mitchell Starc, KL Rahul, Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, Darshan Nalkande, Vipraj Nigam, Dushmantha Chameera, Madhav Tiwari.

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