Kamal Ghorui
Lungi Ngidi did not feature for Delhi Capitals in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Monday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.Ngidi has been ruled out of action for DC’s next game also against Rajasthan Royals on May 1, Cricbuzz reported. The report also stated that the ICC mandates a mandatory seven-day stand-down period for any player diagnosed with a concussion. It added that Ngidi has been asked to follow the same rule, even though IPL playing conditions do not explicitly mention it. He was discharged from hospital the same evening after scans showed no serious issues.The South African fast bowler had been taken to hospital after a serious on-field incident during Delhi Capitals’ match against Punjab Kings on Saturday.In the third over of Punjab Kings’ innings, bowled by Axar Patel, Ngidi attempted a catch off a lofted shot from Priyansh Arya.He back-pedalled to take the catch but did not complete the attempt and stretched backwards without getting his fingers to the ball.He then fell heavily on his head, leading to a stoppage in play for more than 10 minutes. Vipraj Nigam came in as a concussion substitute.Ngidi was stretchered off the field and taken to hospital for scans. This is the second injury setback for Delhi Capitals’ pace unit after Mitchell Starc missed the early part of the season due to Cricket Australia fitness tests. He later joined the squad ahead of the Punjab Kings match but was cleared to play only from May 1. For the RCB match, Delhi Capitals included overseas pacers Kyle Jamieson and Dushmantha Chameera in their playing XI.
