Delhi Capitals (DC) coach Hemang Badani has spoken about Australian pacer Mitchell Starc joining the franchise for IPL 2026 late due to Cricket Australia’s workload monitoring schedule. This comes after DC kept their slim playoff chances alive by defeating the Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Sunday, May 17.
With the victory, DC moved up to 12 points, tied with RR and Chennai Super Kings, but their net run rate kept them in seventh place. DC's destiny could potentially be decided before they even hit the field in their final league match of the season against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
One of the main topics of discussion during DC's season was the sporadic availability of important international players, especially Mitchell Starc, which head coach Hemang Badani addressed after the match.
“Ideally, I would want my players to be available to me from day one. Starc is probably one of the biggest players in my squad, and we’ve invested in him, and we know that he’s a match-winner. But if certain things are above my pay grade and certain things that are decided by associations and governing bodies, there’s very little that we can do,” Badani said in the post-match press conference.
The DC coach pointed to the wider pattern involving Australian players.
“Because if Cricket Australia does not release him, which was also the case with Hazlewood and also the case with Pat Cummins, there’s little a coach or any franchise can do about that. Hopefully, we have a solution to it in the future,” he added.
Starc has the X factor with his pace and can turn things around with the ball. He has taken 9 wickets in 5 games with the best bowling figures of 4/40.
Badani reserved special praise for the Australian’s professionalism, calling him one of the finest examples for younger players. The coach also highlighted Starc’s off-field impact on Delhi’s younger bowlers.
“He's possibly one of the best role models anyone can have in sports. His work ethic and his preparation before the game, with his own plans and his training, are above par. I don't even see that with a lot of the younger boys. That's the reason why he's sustained for so long.
He's always talking to them, trying to pass on knowledge—how can you do reverse swing, how do I hold lengths, and what do I do when a batter is going hard? There's immense conversation that Starcy brings to the table,” Badani said.
According to Badani, Starc was expressly signed because of his capacity to affect an innings at every point.
“He was somebody who liked pressure, somebody who could hit a long ball and at the same time bowl through all three phases. If required, he could even bowl in the power play. And if you go back and see the recent Ashes series, he single-handedly won them the Ashes,” Badani added.
DC will play their final league game against KKR in Kolkata on May 24.
(ANI inputs)
