IPL 2026: KL Rahul to open for Delhi Capitals, Mitchell Starc's availability under cloud

Star batter KL Rahul will open for Delhi Capitals (DC) in the upcoming Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026), confirmed captain Axar Patel on Monday, March 23. Rahul had a brilliant first season for Delhi in 2025, finishing as the highest run scorer of the franchise with 539 runs, despite constant shuffles in the batting order.

Rahul started the season in the middle order before being promoted to open the innings in the final few matches due to Jake Fraser McGurk’s unavailability. However, ahead of the upcoming season, Patel explained the rationale behind keeping Rahul in the middle order last season.

"Last year, he was playing in the middle order because of our team combination. The players we had there were two foreign players, who could play in the top order, and, if you make foreign players play in the middle order, then teams use spin more," said Patel during Delhi Capitals’ pre-season press conference.

The DC skipper also confirmed that the veteran batter will open the innings in the upcoming edition of the tournament.

"So, because of this, we used KL Rahul in the middle order last year. He has always been good, in the opening slot, he has made a lot of runs. And if you get a good start in T20 cricket, then it becomes easier for the ones at the back. So, I think till now, we will keep him as an opener," he added.

Meanwhile, Delhi Capitals head coach Hemang Badani also provided an update on fast bowler Mitchell Starc’s fitness ahead of the season, mentioning that he has started bowling in the nets. However, DC remain unsure of his joining date as Cricket Australia (CA) is yet to provide a Non-Objection Certificate (NOC) to the fast bowler.

Mitchell Starc's availability remains unknown

"On Mitchell Starc, we are in constant communication with him and the relevant boards. He has started bowling, and had a session recently. But the key point here is that until Cricket Australia provides the No Objection Certificate and confirms his availability, there is very little we as a franchise can do. Once that clearance comes through, we will have complete clarity on when he joins the squad and how we plan around that,” said Badani.

Starc’s availability for DC remains under a cloud as Cricket Australia (CA) is managing their fast bowlers’ workload ahead of a busy Test Calendar from August 2026. Starc’s Australia teammate Josh Hazlewood is also set to miss the first few matches for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) as he continues to recover from hamstring and Achilles issues, which have kept him out of action since November 2025. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Pat Cummins will also miss a few initial games for his team.

The Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026) is all set to begin on March 28 with the opening fixture between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. On the other hand, Delhi Capitals will kickstart their season on April 1 against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.