A couple of golden ducks and multiple early blows could not stop Delhi Capitals (DC) from registering their first win in their opening match of the IPL 2026 season. Chasing a target of 142, they won the match by 6 wickets and 17 balls to spare.
The run instantly got tricky as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pacer Mohammed Shami sent Delhi Capitals opener KL Rahul for a golden duck. Captain Axar Patel also returned for a golden duck with his name. Despite the multiple early setbacks, DC held their nerves strongly to make a comeback in the contest and eventually won the match against LSG at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow as well.
Pair of Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs confirms victory for Delhi Capitals over LSG
Sri Lanka international Pathum Nissanka (1) and an IPL stalwart Nitish Rana (15) also departed cheaply in the run chase. In the second innings, Delhi was on 26 for 4, and LSG was in the driving seat.
Your daily dose of cricket!
While the experienced batters went off guard quickly, two emerging players— Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs— remained firm on their grounds to make a counterattack against the thriving LSG bowlers.
Delhi Capitals included Rizvi in their batting power as an Impact Player, and it worked out for them tonight as the 22-year-old remained not out for 70 runs in 47 balls, smashing a total of nine boundaries, including five 4s and six 6s. South Africa international Tristan Stubbs accompanied Rizvi well with a gritty, unbeaten 39-run knock against 32 balls with three 4s and one 6.
Axar Patel revealed that they faced a hard challenge in team selection
The Lucknow Super Giants skipper Rishabh Pant introduced seven bowlers in their defence but they proved ineffective as Rizvi and Stubbs were prepared for all kinds of challenges.
In the match after the presentation ceremony, Patel revealed that they needed to choose between Sameer Rizvi and Asutosh Sharma for the impact player role. He praised his bowling department as well for restricting the opposing team to a reasonable total. Patel pointed out that the partnership of Rizvi and Stubbs was essential during that stage of the match.
He [Sameer Rizvi] works hard on his game- Axar Patel
“It finished early but in the middle it had become close. We just needed one partnership and that’s what we spoke about in the break. Very happy with the bowling effort. When we started with the ball, we knew there was a bit of help for the bowlers, which was communicated to whoever was coming onto bowl,” Axar Patel, the captain of the Delhi Capitals said after the match.
“You see how the match is going, there was a bigger and smaller boundary, and I was seeing who I could bowl, in the end, I might have miscalculated. The plan was to play Sameer Rizvi, but also have the option of Ashutosh Sharma. Last year Ashu did it in the first game and this time Rizvi. He [Sameer Rizvi] works hard on his game and keeps asking how he can improve himself,” he added.
Read More: “We didn’t have enough”: Rishabh Pant takes responsibility after LSG’s batting failure in loss to DC in IPL 2026