Akshar PatelThe Delhi Capitals captain heaped praises Mitchell Starc The left-arm pacer took three wickets in his first game of IPL 2026 as they beat Delhi Capitals. Rajasthan Royals By 7 wickets Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc returned to professional cricket after nearly three months recovering from shoulder and elbow injuries and got rid of Yashaswi Jaiswal in his very first over to put Rajasthan Royals on the back foot. Then, later in the match in the 17th over, the great Australian left-armer also dispatched Ravindra Jadeja and Ryan Prag. He eventually finished with figures of 3/40.Captain Akshar Patel called him a legend of the game in the post-match conference after the win.“Obviously. The way he bowled today, he is a legend of the game. After being away for three months, to come back and perform like that on the wicket – that tells you how big a player he is. Very happy that Starc is back and showing everyone why he is such a great bowler,” Axar said on Starc.
Delhi overtook Rajasthan.
KL Rahul led a dominant chase as Delhi Capitals beat Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, successfully chasing 226 with five balls to spare.Rahul opened the innings with a 40-ball 75, while Patham Nissanka opened the innings with a blistering 62 off 33. A partnership from Nitish Rana (33 off 17) and an unbeaten finishing stand between Ashutosh Sharma and Tristan Stubbs ensured a smooth chase.Earlier, Ryan Prag scored a brilliant 90 in 50 for Rajasthan as they slumped to 12/2. He shared a crucial 102-run partnership with Dhruv Jural (42), which helped Royals post 225/6. However, on a batting pitch, their total proved insufficient as Delhi completed their second consecutive successful 225+ chase at the venue within a week.
