A big blow has hit the Delhi Capitals as their fast bowler, Mitchell Starc, will be unavailable for a few more matches. The Capitals have won two consecutive matches in IPL 2026, beating Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians. With Starc not playing for the Axar Patel-led side, Mukesh Kumar and T Natarajan have done well for the franchise. According to TOI, Starc has been ruled out of three more matches.
The left-arm seamer is down with shoulder and elbow injuries and is likely to join his IPL franchise after April 20. DC will compete against the Gujarat Titans on April 8, Chennai Super Kings on April 11 and defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru on April 18.
Delhi bowlers Axar, Kuldeep Yadav, Natarajan and Mukesh have done well, but the inclusion of the Australian speedster would make the bowling attack more lethal.
Starc had slammed the critics for questioning his commitment to the Delhi Capitals after he didn’t arrive in India before the start of the 19th season of the tournament.
“People have different views, and they use social media platforms and the Indian media. However, they are not aware that I am currently managing my shoulder and elbow injuries,” Starc said in a statement.
“These individuals have made strong statements and provided wrong information about players. They preached their opinions as facts and claimed to know my body better than me,” he added.
In IPL 2025, he took 14 wickets. The veteran apologised to his team for not joining the squad from the start of the new season. Starc was bought for INR 11.75 crore during the 2025 mega auction.
“I know my injuries are going to disrupt the plans of the Delhi Capitals, and I apologize for that,” he mentioned.
Starc was involved in five Test matches against England, and his heavy workload took a toll on his body.
