IPL bloodbath: Captains of three reputed franchises set to be sacked after humiliating 2026 season - Report

“Three IPL captains are in the line of fire due to campaigns that have been nothing short of disastrous and they could end up losing their jobs when the season winds up later this month, sources tracking developments in various franchises have indicated. Axar Patel, Ajinkya Rahane and Rishabh Pant have captained for two successive seasons and failed miserably in their bid to take their respective teams into the playoffs,” the PTI report stated.

“In Pant's case, it is an open secret in franchise cricket that captaincy doesn't sit well with him. Pant has tried batting at different positions, but it has often seemed that he is carrying a thousand-ton burden on his shoulders. In a franchise ecosystem where instant results are the norm, failing to qualify for two successive seasons is unlikely to go down well,” the report stated.

“In 12 games, Axar has bowled only 36 overs, exactly three overs per game, and picked up 10 wickets at an economy rate of 8.08. While the economy rate looks respectable considering the punishment endured by fellow spinner Kuldeep Yadav, Axar has often under-bowled himself. With Delhi Capitals having an arrangement of equal owners – JSW and GMR split management responsibilities in alternate cycles – next season will see Parth Jindal and JSW taking charge of cricket operations,” the report added.

“The decisions to ignore a flamboyant batter like Abhishek Porel, not using an all-rounder like Madhav Tiwari consistently, and throwing an out-of-sync youngster like Sahil Parakh into the deep end expecting him to do a Vaibhav Suryavanshi have not gone unnoticed. Parakh undoubtedly has talent but remains a work in progress. With mega auctions slated for 2027, Axar as a player could still be retained but there has been little evidence of dynamic leadership so far. As decision-making powers shift from GMR to JSW, Axar's future as leader certainly isn't cast in stone.”

“Rahane's appointment at KKR was largely a classic TINA (There Is No Alternative) case as the franchise lacked credible leadership options. It also helped that his former Mumbai teammate Abhishek Nayar was at the helm as head coach. However, KKR were hamstrung by the fact that Rahane and Nayar's protege Angkrish Raghuvanshi could not match the pace demanded from top-order batters in modern T20 cricket,” said the report.

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