Rishabh Pant officially rejoined the Delhi Capitals in a massive trade deal, with Kuldeep Yadav moving to the Lucknow Super Giants. While the wicketkeeper-batter returned to DC for Rs 15 crore, the wrist-spinner went to LSG for Rs 13.5 crore.
When the trade was finalized, Rishabh Pant tried to call Axar Patel to break the news. The current DC skipper missed the calls because he was busy spending time with his child.
When the two finally spoke, Axar jokingly welcomed Pant back using a famous Hindi proverb: "Subah ka bhula agar shaam ko ghar wapas aa jaye toh use bhula nahi kehte", which translates to, “If someone who loses his way in the morning returns home by evening, they are not considered lost.”
Axar Patel also shared a heartfelt video message for Pant, citing that the latter will get "full freedom" from his end as a captain.
“Between us there has never been any difference between as a captain or friend. Basically, when he was at DC, he was my captain and he was leading me. At that time also there was no wall between us, that I am the captain and you have to do as I say. We worked under mutual understanding and we both are senior players so there was a mutual understanding that we know what each of us could in the given situation,” Axar stated.
Axar advised Pant to simply enjoy himself and stay true to his natural character. Addressing Pant's recent struggles, the DC captain backed his quality by adding: "Form is temporary, class is permanent."
Rishabh Pant's first stint (2016-24) with the Delhi Capitals established him as the franchise’s all-time leading run-scorer. During this period, he played 111 matches and scored 3,284 runs at a strike rate of 148.93, including 18 half-centuries and one hundred.
Pant was roped in by LSG for a record sum of Rs 27 crore during the IPL 2025 mega auction, but he managed just over 500 runs across two seasons with the franchise.
Under his leadership, the Super Giants endured back‑to‑back disappointing campaigns, with the side finishing seventh last year and slipping further this season by ending at the bottom of the points table.
