IPL 2026: Akshar Patel’s name entered in the unwanted record book, became the second worst captain… cricket news
Akshar Patel He suffered another disappointing performance with the bat as his difficult IPL 2026 season reached a new low during Delhi Capitals’ clash against Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday.The Delhi captain has the second lowest batting average by any captain among players who have batted in at least seven innings in an IPL season. Axar has scored only 44 runs in 11 matches this season at an average of 6.28 and is behind only Shane Warne, who averaged 2.00 in IPL 2010.
Lowest average for a captain in an IPL season (7+ innings)2.00 Shane Warne (2010)6.28 Akshar Patel (2026)*11.08 Eoin Morgan (2021)12.00 Harbhajan Singh (2012)12.75 R Ashwin (2018)Adding to the concern, Axar currently owns the lowest strike-rate in IPL 2026 among batsmen who have faced a minimum of 50 balls. His strike-rate of 74.57 highlights the extent of his struggles in a season where aggressive batting has been in the headlines.The poor figures resulted in another disappointing evening for Delhi at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, as KKR’s spin attack completely thrashed the hosts.While Pathum Nissanka scored a composed half-century and KL Rahul added 23 runs at the top, Delhi’s middle order once again collapsed under pressure.spin trio of Sunil NarineAnukul Roy and Varun Chakraborty controlled the middle overs completely, minimizing boundaries and forcing risky shots.Narine removed Sameer Rizvi soon after returning to the attack, while Roy dealt the decisive blow by dismissing and then trapping Nissanka soon after his half-century. Tristan Stubbs In the same over.Delhi lost four wickets in the middle overs as KKR tightened their grip through spin. Had it not been for Ashutosh Sharma’s late reply of 39 off 28 balls, the hosts would have struggled to even cross the 100-run mark.Axar’s poor form with the bat has now become one of the biggest concerns for Delhi Capitals in what is becoming a tough IPL campaign.