"He also brings brand value with him" - Aakash Chopra on Delhi Capitals needing to choose between KL Rahul and all-rounder as captain for IPL 2025

Former India player Aakash Chopra has reckoned that the Delhi Capitals (DC) might have to choose between Axar Patel and KL Rahul as their captain for IPL 2025. While observing that the spin-bowling all-rounder has been recently appointed India's T20I vice-captain, he pointed out that the Karnataka batter brings multiple attributes, including brand value, with him.

The Capitals retained Axar for ₹16.50 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 auction. After they failed to reacquire Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant at the auction, they bought Rahul for ₹14 crore.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener reflected on the three IPL franchises yet to announce their captains. As for the Delhi Capitals, he said (3:35):

"Three captains have not yet been announced and I am wondering what is going to happen there. You might be thinking who will be Delhi's captain. Since we get all sources-led news these days, a lot of reports say that Axar Patel, who has become the Indian team's vice-captain recently, could be the captain there."

"That is a possibility. He is ready. I too advocated that you are taking KL Rahul but it's not mandatory to make him the captain. You have another Indian option available to you. However, it will be interesting to see what the team thinks. KL Rahul brings a lot of things. He also brings brand value with him, and sometimes franchises think like that also, as to what is better for their setup," Chopra added.

KL Rahul has previously captained the Punjab Kings (PBKS) and the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the IPL. Although Axar Patel has never been a full-time skipper in the prestigious league, he recently captained Gujarat in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

---

"Shreyas Iyer is not there now" - Aakash Chopra on KKR's potential captain

Shreyas Iyer led KKR to the IPL 2024 title. [P/C: iplt20.com]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that Venkatesh Iyer and Rinku Singh might be the captaincy options for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

"What will happen in Kolkata? Again that's a big one as to who would become the captain. Shreyas Iyer is not there now. Could it be Venkatesh Iyer because he was the most expensive, or else Rinku Singh, who was retained?" he said (4:30).

While naming Ajinkya Rahane as an out-of-the-box captaincy candidate for KKR, the cricketer-turned-analyst reckoned that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) would almost certainly be led by Virat Kohli.

"Could it be Ajinkya Rahane? Absolutely out of the box as he was bought at the end, but he has a proven track record as a captain. Then of course, who will become the captain for RCB, which we are talking about, but I feel Virat Kohli has already become the captain. No one else will become the captain there," Chopra observed.

While KKR retained Rinku Singh for ₹13 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, they bought Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane for ₹23.75 crore and ₹1.50 crore respectively. Virat Kohli (₹21 crore) was among the three players retained by RCB ahead of the auction, with Rajat Patidar (₹11 crore) and Yash Dayal (₹5 crore) being the other two.