Pathum Nissanka and the uneasy start: Delhi Capitals weigh a change at the top
Under the bright glare of an IPL opening night, the simplest job in cricket can feel like the loneliest: walking out first, knowing the chase has already turned “tricky. ” Delhi Capitals did that with KL Rahul and pathum nissanka, and the plan didn’t quite land—both openers struggled as the innings asked hard questions early.
Why did Delhi Capitals open with pathum nissanka and KL Rahul?
Delhi Capitals began their IPL 2026 campaign with a win over Gujarat Titans, but the top of the order left room for debate. In the season opener, the team went with KL Rahul and pathum nissanka as openers, while Prithvi Shaw remained on the bench. The choice “didn’t quite pay off, ” with both openers struggling in that difficult chase.
The conversation now is less about blaming any one player and more about what the opening partnership needs to survive: clarity, rhythm, and an immediate answer to high-quality new-ball bowling. One match can be an outlier, but the IPL rarely gives teams the luxury of waiting too long for a combination to settle.
Pathum Nissanka or Prithvi Shaw: what is Irfan Pathan urging DC to do?
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has pushed Delhi Capitals to consider bringing Prithvi Shaw back into the playing XI as an opener against Mumbai Indians. Pathan’s message was direct, and it came with a view of what Delhi might choose anyway.
“Play Prithvi Shaw. It is very important to include him. But Delhi might go towards Pathum Nissanka. In my team, either Prithvi Shaw or Abhishek Porel would be there. I would definitely go with Prithvi Shaw, ” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.
Shaw’s case, as Pathan frames it, is not sentimental—it is functional. Shaw is returning to the IPL after missing last season. Delhi Capitals showed renewed faith in him despite releasing him ahead of IPL 2025, a year in which he went unsold at the mega auction. Pathan is effectively asking the franchise to act on that renewed faith quickly, especially with a major opponent next.
What form has Prithvi Shaw shown, and what challenge awaits KL Rahul vs Mumbai Indians?
Shaw’s recent domestic numbers provide the main evidence cited for his recall. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he scored 193 runs across six innings at an average of 32. 17, striking at over 100, with two half-centuries. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he managed 183 runs from seven outings, averaging 26. 14 and scoring at a strike rate above 160, again registering two fifties.
There is also the larger arc of Shaw’s IPL history with Delhi. From 2018 to 2024, he represented the franchise, amassing 1, 892 runs in 79 innings at an average close to 24 and a strike rate of 147. 46, including 14 fifties, with a highest score of 99. Out of the India set-up since 2021, the coming weeks in IPL 2026 carry the feel of a reset—an attempt to make a season “count” in the most unforgiving format of career assessment.
But Delhi’s decision at the top cannot be separated from the opponent. Pathan highlighted the specific test that KL Rahul faces against Mumbai Indians, focusing on the quality in their bowling attack: Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Hardik Pandya, and Allah Ghazanfar.
“We know how KL Rahul can play, but the question is, what kind of bowling is he up against? You have Boult, you have Hardik, you have Bumrah, you have Allah Ghazanfar. There is real quality in that bowling attack, and Bumrah is always a trump card. So here, I feel Mumbai will have to plan a lot of matchups against KL Rahul, because you won’t find a better batter than him in this entire batting unit, ” Pathan said.
That assessment places Rahul at the center of Delhi’s batting identity—even as the opening partner remains uncertain. In practical terms, the next selection choice is about giving Rahul the best possible runway at the top: someone who can share early risk, rotate strike, or punch enough boundary pressure to prevent Mumbai from settling into matchups.
For Delhi Capitals, the story of the opening slot has turned into a small referendum on direction. Do they persist with the Rahul–pathum nissanka pairing, accepting that early struggles can happen in a “tricky chase”? Or do they turn to Shaw, a familiar name in franchise colors, backed by recent domestic returns and a public nudge from Pathan?
Back at the crease where the season began, the memory is still fresh: two openers trying to find timing while the chase tightened. The next time Delhi’s first wicket partnership walks out, the question will be whether continuity or change offers the calmer first breath—and whether pathum nissanka remains part of that answer.
