There has been no major KL Rahul news in recent times. The star keeper wasn’t in India’s T20I picture and thus stayed away from the limelight when the T20 World Cup 2026 was on. Now, with the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 coming up, the Delhi Capitals (DC) superstar will try to steer his franchise towards success while batting right at top.
Well, as per the Times of India, KL Rahul is all set to be the designated opener for DC at IPL 2026. He will also be the one to don the wicket-keeping role. This is interesting since Rahul didn’t start as an opener last season as DC experimented in his maiden year with the franchise. With Faf du Plessis, Abhisek Porel and Jake Fraser-McGurk there, DC used them initially before finally slotting Rahul at his best position.
Who will open with KL Rahul at IPL 2026?
What makes this decision even more interesting is the sheer number of opening options DC have at their disposal this time. Unlike last season, when combinations felt a bit unsettled, DC are walking into IPL 2026 with genuine depth at the top.
Picking Ben Duckett and Pathum Nissanka at the auction was a superb stroke by DC as they look like the most straightforward contenders to partner Rahul. Duckett brings that left-handed aggression, but he hasn’t had much recent game time. Nissanka, on the other hand, comes in with consistency on his side. But he and Rahul could end up being the same type of batters, which can do more harm than good.
Then there is Prithvi Shaw, who always feels one good run away from reclaiming his spot, and Abishek Porel, who has already shown flexibility across roles. It leaves DC with four realistic opening partners for Rahul, which is both a luxury and a headache.
Back to where he belongs and why it matters
If there is one thing Rahul’s IPL career has made clear, it is this. He is at his most effective when he opens. The numbers back it, and so does the eye test.
In IPL 2025, DC tried to use him in the middle order for most of the season. While he still scored runs, it always felt like something was missing. The tempo, the control of the innings, and the ability to dictate match-ups from ball one. All of that naturally comes when Rahul starts the innings. Once promoted back to the top towards the end of the season, Rahul immediately responded with a hundred against Gujarat Titans.
His record as an opener is elite. Over 4400 runs, average touching 50, strike rate comfortably above 135. More importantly, he knows how to pace an innings in T20 cricket, something DC lacked during key moments last season. He still finished as DC’s highest run-scorer with 539 runs at a strike rate close to 150, his best since 2018.
Delhi Capitals IPL 2026 squad
Batters: KL Rahul (WK), Karun Nair, David Miller, Ben Duckett, Pathum Nissanka, Sahil Parakh, Prithvi Shaw, Abishek Porel (WK), Tristan Stubbs
All-rounders: Axar Patel (C), Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Ajay Mandal, Tripurana Vijay, Madhav Tiwari, Auqib Dar, Nitish Rana
Bowlers: Mitchell Starc, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar, Dushmantha Chameera, Lungi Ngidi, Kyle Jamieson, Kuldeep Yadav
