Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin slammed Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Axar Patel’s bowling management during their 2026 IPL loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Tuesday (April 21).
Ashwin criticized using part-timer Nitish Rana for a full four overs while underutilizing front-line bowlers, expressing disbelief at the tactical decision as Abhishek Sharma dominated the attack.
Ashwin questioned why Kuldeep Yadav and Axar himself were not used optimally, instead relying on Nitish, who became the first DC bowler in the match to complete his quota of overs, conceding 53 runs with an economy of 13.25.
"It didn't happen just once; it happened multiple times. Nitish Rana was essentially used as the primary option in the Delhi Capitals attack, despite specialists like Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, Mukesh Kumar, and T. Natarajan being available," Ashwin said in a video shared on his YouTube channel.
"Who actually completed the first full four-over spell for that attack? It was Nitish Rana. I rest my case, Your Honour," he added.
Ashwin emphasized that even if main bowlers are expensive, relying on part-timers over specialists in crucial situations is a flawed strategy.
"I've said this before! Even the best bowlers can have an off day. In the T20 format, anyone can concede 50 runs. Take T. Natarajan, for instance - he bowled well today but still went for 40 runs. It isn't a slight against Rana to say he might concede 50, but my point is simple: if you have five specialist bowlers, use them. If they go for runs, so be it - at least you've exhausted your primary options," he stated.
Ashwin maintained that experienced spinners like Axar and Kuldeep, even if expensive early on, have the capability to bounce back and, ultimately, it is their job to pick wickets.
"Today, only two wickets fell. Axar Patel claimed one, and the other was a run-out involving Nitish Rana. Essentially, Delhi's bowling unit took only one wicket all day. Axar managed that breakthrough while conceding only 21 or 22 runs," Ashwin remarked.
"Compare that to the handling of Kuldeep Yadav, who went for 30 runs in his first two overs. We saw a similar pattern previously where he was expensive early on but bounced back to take crucial wickets. Kuldeep is a match-winner. Even if he goes for 50 runs, you stick with him because he takes wickets. The same applies to Axar Patel. No matter how the game is going, you trust them - because, ultimately, that is their job," he concluded.
Coming to the match, Delhi Capitals succumbed to a crushing 47-run defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
Invited to bat, SRH racked up a mammoth 242/2 on the board, thanks to Abhishek’s blazing century (135* off 68). Heinrich Klaasen (37* off 13), Ishan Kishan (25 off 23) and Travis Head (37 off 26) also made handy contributions.
In reply, Nitish Rana (57), Sameer Rizvi (41) and KL Rahul (37) provided resistance, but the Capitals suffered a middle-order collapse. Eshan Malinga was the pick of the bowlers with 4/32, while Harsh Dubey finished with three scalps in the final over, ensuring DC was kept to 195/9.
