Full list of DC captains and their records since IPL 2018 ft. Axar Patel

The Delhi Capitals (DC) made the breakthrough announcement by appointing India all-rounder Axar Patel as their captain ahead of the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League on Friday, March 14. The franchise had to take the bold move after parting ways with former captain Rishabh Pant.

Axar's stock is rising in Indian cricket, with senior head coach Gautam Gambhir trusting his batting skills. He was promoted to play in the middle-order during the limited-overs series against England, and later in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, which the Men in Blue won.

His bowling has been as brilliant as ever, with him returning from the eight-nation tournament with five wickets in as many matches. It would not have been easy for Patel to operate in a squad that had four specialist spinners, but he held his calm and delivered the goods whenever skipper Rohit Sharma asked him to.

And now, his IPL franchise have rewarded his experience (he has been with them since 2019) and recent performances with the captaincy offer. He has played 82 matches for the Capitals so far in his career.

In this listicle, we take a look at the full list of DC captains since 2018 and their records:

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#5 Gautam Gambhir (2018)

#5 Gautam Gambhir Current India head coach Gautam Gambhir was in charge of the Capitals for a few games in the 2018 season. In total, Gambhir led the side in six matches in that campaign, but could only emerge victorious in one of them.

Following a dismal record of five losses in six games, he made way for Shreyas Iyer. Iyer looked brilliant from the first game he took charge as DC (or Delhi Daredevils, as the franchise was known back then), smashing an unbeaten 93 off 40 deliveries in their 55-run victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at home.

Looking back, Gambhir's performance seemed dismal for DC.

Season	Win	Loss
2018	1	5

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#4 Shreyas Iyer (2018-2020)

Shreyas Iyer was the captain of DC for three seasons between 2018 and 2020 and is still remembered for his tactical nous. Iyer, who finished as the second-highest run-getter behind Rachin Ravindra in the 2025 Champions Trophy, now plies his trade for Punjab Kings in the IPL.

The Mumbai batter led the Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL title in 2024, but was picked up by the Mohali-based franchise in the mega auction. His record as DC captain is stellar - he has led them to 23 wins. Under Iyer's tenure, DC ended the 2020 season as runner-up and the 2019 season as the second runner-up.

Season	Wins	Losses
2018	4	4
2019	10	6
2020	9	8

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#3 Rishabh Pant (2021-2022, 2024)

Rishabh Pant was first made the captain of DC in 2021 after Iyer was ruled out of the season due to an injury. Pant led the franchise for the first time in his career, and did reasonably well, helping them finish the league stage on top of the table. However, they lost both their playoff matches and did not make it to the final.

In 2022, DC did not make it to the playoffs by a narrow margin, finishing the league stage in the fifth position. They won seven out of the 14 matches they played in that campaign, but were pipped by the Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the playoffs spot.

In 2024, Pant returned as DC's captain, and they finished sixth with 14 points. However, he had to sit out for a game against RCB owing to a slow over-rate ban; Axar Patel led the side in his absence.

Season	Wins	Losses
2021	10	6
2022	7	7
2024	7	6

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#2 David Warner (2023)

With Rishabh Pant ruled out of the 2023 season with his near-life-threatening road accident in the winter of the previous year, David Warner was appointed the franchise's captain. The Australian did well for himself, ending the season with 516 runs, but DC fared poorly, finishing in the second-last spot of the league table.

They won five and lost nine matches that season and seemed a far cry from the dominance they had shown in 2019 and 2020. They just about managed to avoid the wooden spoon in this campaign, which was reserved for the Aiden Markram-led SunRisers Hyderabad, who ended up as the runner-up in 2024.

Season	Wins	Losses
2023	5	9

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#1 Axar Patel (2024)

Axar Patel, who has been named captain of DC for the 2025 edition of the tournament, has led the side only once in the past, in a game in 2024 when regular skipper Rishabh Pant had to sit out due to a ban imposed upon him. Pant incurred this ban due to his team's slow over-rate against the Rajasthan Royals on May 7.

Axar was handed the captaincy for their next game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, but unfortunately, he could not lead them to a victory. Batting first in Bengaluru, RCB put up a daunting total of 187-9, which DC failed to chase down. They were bowled out for 140, eventually losing the game by 47 runs.

Season	Wins	Losses
2024	0	1