Lucknow : The unbreakable partnership between Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs guided Delhi Capitals to victory against Lucknow Super Giants in the fifth match of the Indian Premier League 2026 season, marking a strong start to their campaign. Delhi won by six wickets while chasing 142 on the complex surface of the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium.
Delhi ended last season in 5th position under the leadership of Axar Patel, failing to qualify for the playoffs. They started this season with a win in a tricky match. On the other side, Lucknow finished 7th last season under Rishabh Pant. Both teams began their campaigns with similar squads, with only a few changes from the 2026 auction. Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul both played their first match against their former franchises.
The match began with Delhi Capitals winning the toss and choosing to bowl first. Lucknow Super Giants opened with their captain Rishabh Pant and Mitchell Marsh. In the 2.6 over, Rishabh Pant was run out for 7 runs off 9 balls at the non-striker’s end on a straight drive by Mitchell Marsh, which was clearly a moment of bad luck for him. Aiden Markram came in at No. 3 and was beautifully bowled by captain Axar Patel after scoring 11 off 8 balls. Ayush Badoni was dismissed for a duck (caught by KL Rahul, bowled by T Natarajan). Nicholas Pooran also fell early, bowled by Lungi Ngidi for 8 off 8 balls. Mitchell Marsh played some good shots but was dismissed by Kuldeep Yadav after scoring 35 off 28 balls. Mukul Choudhary, playing his IPL debut match, was also dismissed early by Kuldeep for 14 off 11 balls. Abdul Samad scored 36 off 25 balls before being caught by David and bowled by Natarajan. Shahbaz Ahmed came in as an impact player and scored 15 off 16 balls. At 17.3 overs, LSG were 138/7, and they lost their last three wickets by 18.4 overs, getting all out for 141. The LSG batting order struggled against a strong DC bowling performance, Delhi’s bowlers did a great job slowing down the scoring.
In the second innings, KL Rahul opened for Delhi alongside Pathum Nissanka, who was making his IPL debut. Mohammed Shami delivered the first over and made an immediate impact by dismissing Rahul for a duck on the very first ball. With this, Shami recorded his fifth first-ball wicket in IPL history, setting the all-time record. The LSG pace attack destroyed DC’s top order early: Nissanka scored 1 off 5 balls, Rana made 15 off 17 balls, and captain Axar Patel was dismissed for a duck. Delhi were in deep trouble at 26/4 in the powerplay, marking LSG’s highest number of wickets taken inside the first six overs in IPL history.
At this critical stage, Sameer Rizvi came in as an impact player and, along with Tristan Stubbs, built an unbeaten 119-run partnership—the match-winning stand. They played brilliantly, cautiously building the innings during the middle overs and avoiding big shots until after the 15th over. Once settled, Rizvi accelerated, hitting powerful shots and playing an excellent knock. He scored a spectacular unbeaten 70 off 47 balls and was named Player of the Match. Stubbs provided great support, playing a crucial role in the chase, scoring 39 runs off 32 balls.
With this unbroken partnership, Delhi Capitals reached 145/4 in 17.1 overs and won the match. Delhi Capitals will play against Mumbai Indians on 4th April 2026, while Lucknow Super Giants will face Sunrisers Hyderabad on 5th April. It will be interesting to see whether Delhi can continue their positive form and whether Lucknow can bounce back strongly in their next match.
