Kamal Ghorui
Axar Patel endured another disappointing outing with the bat as his difficult IPL 2026 season hit a new low during Delhi Capitals’ clash against Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday.The Delhi skipper now has the second-lowest batting average by a captain in an IPL season among players who have batted in at least seven innings. Axar has managed just 44 runs in 11 matches this season at an average of 6.28, placing him only behind Shane Warne, who averaged 2.00 in IPL 2010.
Lowest avg for a captain in an IPL season (7+ innings)2.00 Shane Warne (2010)6.28 Axar Patel (2026) *11.08 Eoin Morgan (2021)12.00 Harbhajan Singh (2012)12.75 R Ashwin (2018)Adding to the concern, Axar also currently owns the lowest strike-rate in IPL 2026 among batters who have faced a minimum of 50 balls. His strike-rate of 74.57 highlights the extent of his struggles in a season where aggressive batting has dominated headlines.The poor numbers came on another frustrating evening for Delhi at the Arun Jaitley Stadium as KKR’s spin attack completely strangled the hosts.While Pathum Nissanka scored a composed fifty and KL Rahul added 23 at the top, Delhi’s middle order once again collapsed under pressure.The spin trio of Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy and Varun Chakaravarthy completely controlled the middle overs, drying up boundaries and forcing risky shots.Narine removed Sameer Rizvi soon after returning to the attack, while Roy delivered the decisive blows by dismissing Nissanka immediately after his fifty and then trapping Tristan Stubbs in the same over.Delhi lost four wickets in the middle overs as KKR tightened their grip through spin. If not for Ashutosh Sharma’s late counterattack of 39 off 28 balls, the hosts may have struggled to cross even the 100-run mark.Axar’s poor form with the bat has now become one of the biggest concerns for Delhi Capitals in an increasingly difficult IPL campaign.
