“Very likely to beat number 4”

Former India player Sanjay Bangar has opined that Sameer Rizvi could bat at No.4 for Delhi Capitals (DC) in IPL 2026. He also reckoned that the franchise can only afford to have three foreign players in its starting eleven in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League.

Rizvi was one of the players retained by the Delhi Capitals ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. The IPL 2020 finalists, who have a remaining purse of ₹21.80 crore, can buy a maximum of eight players, including five overseas, in the mini auction in Abu Dhabi on December 16.

During an interaction in star sportsBangar pointed out that while Rizvi will potentially bat at No.4 for the Delhi Capitals, the franchise should acquire a top-order batsman.

“Rizvi clearly makes the team. He will most likely bat at No. 4 because he is quite impressive at that particular number. This is the team that can start the playing XI with only three foreign players. The No. 1 priority would be someone who bats at the top of the order,” he said.

The former India all-rounder estimated that the acquisition of DC Nitish Rana of Rajasthan Royals (RR) should keep them in good stead.

“Having switched Nitish, he can come in at No. 3, which gives them a good right-left mix throughout the top order. If Nitish is not there, the entire top order could end up being right-handed, at least the top five. So Nitish can fit in quite well and he’s a Delhi boy. On these low surfaces, he can be quite effective for that Bangar franchise reason.

DC traded Rana from RR for Rs 4.20 crore before the IPL 2026 Auction. The left-handed batsman had mixed performances in IPL 2025, scoring 217 runs at a strike rate of 161.94 in 11 innings.

---

“Maybe Jonny Bairstow is not a bad choice for Delhi Capitals” – Sanjay Bangar

In the same interaction, Sanjay Bangar named Jonny Bairstow as a potential target for a Capitals of Delhiwhile he opined that KL Rahul would continue to bat at the top of the order.

“The main target for them would be a top-order batsman. If he is a wicketkeeper batsman, they will be happy. If he can bowl well, that is also good. Maybe Jonny Bairstow is not a bad option for Delhi Capitals. Rahul remains at the top of the order,” he said.

The former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) head coach added that DC has a formidable middle order.

“They have quality in the middle order because they have Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs and Axar Patel. Ashutosh Sharma has made his impact and Vipraj Nigam has also shown he can contribute with the bat. Add to that Mitchell Starc’s recent Ashes skills, it just reminds you that he has that batting ability too. So he gets a batting overseas, who can bat well in Delhi.”

To conclude, Sanjay Bangar pointed out that a small question mark over Jonny Bairstow would be that the pitch at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium might not be ideal for him. However, he opined that Delhi Capitals are unlikely to start with either Karun Nair or Abishek Porel at the top of the order.