According to a report by the Times of India, wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is unlikely to continue as captain of the Delhi Capitals for the 2025 IPL season. The franchise is reportedly considering Axar Patel as a potential replacement for the skipper role or may seek a suitable captain during the IPL auction.

Despite the captaincy change, Pant is expected to remain a key player for the franchise, with plans for him to be its top retention. The team management believes that relieving him of captaincy pressures could enhance his on-field performance.

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The Delhi Capitals have yet to secure an IPL trophy, with their best finish occurring in 2020 when they reached the finals but ultimately fell short. 

There have also been speculations about Shreyas Iyer potentially leaving the Kolkata Knight Riders to assume the captaincy of the Delhi franchise, although these reports remain unconfirmed. As the team prepares for the upcoming season, discussions about leadership and strategy are gaining momentum.

'Will I be sold or not?' Pant's cryptic post ahead of IPL auction raises eyebrows!

India wicketkeeper and Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant shocked his fans and franchise with his cryptic social media post ahead of the upcoming IPL mega auction. Taking to X, Pant asked if he went under the hammer, how much money would he fetch or will he remain unsold.  

Pant wrote, "If go to the auction. Will I be sold or not and for how much?"

The left-handed attacking batter made his return to competitive cricket earlier this year in IPL 2024 after the horrific car crash that ruled him out of the entire 2023 season. He went on to win the ICC T20 World Cup with Rohit Sharma-led side before returning to ODI and Test squads.

After the announcement of the IPL Player Regulations by the BCCI last month, Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal confirmed that Pant "will definitely be retained" by the franchise.

"Yes, we definitely have to retain. We have some very good players in our team. The rules have come out now, so after discussing with GMR and our director of cricket, Sourav Ganguly, decisions will be made. Rishabh Pant will definitely be retained," Jindal told IANS earlier this month.

"We also have Axar Patel, who is excellent, Tristan Stubbs, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Kuldeep Yadav, Abishek Porel, Mukesh Kumar, and Khaleel Ahmed, all very good players in our team. We'll see what happens in the auction. But first, as per the rule, we can retain six players. After discussions, we will proceed with the auction and see what happens," he added.

Earlier, Pant lashed out at a social media user for claiming his possible link-up with Royal Challengers Bengaluru ahead of the IPL mega auction. However, the wicketkeeper reacted strongly to the post and called it "fake news".

The IPL franchises can retain a total of six players from their existing squad. This can be either via retention or by using the Right to Match (RTM) option. The six retentions/ RTM’s can have a maximum of five capped players (Indian & Overseas) and a maximum of two uncapped players.

The auction purse for the franchises has been set at Rs 120 crore for IPL 2025. The total salary cap will now consist of auction purse, incremental performance pay and match fees. Previously in 2024, the total salary cap (auction purse + incremental performance pay) was Rs 110 cr which will now be Rs 146 cr (2025), Rs 151 cr (2026) and Rs 157 cr (2027). (With inputs from Agencies)