"They left the breadcrumbs for KL Rahul" - Aakash Chopra on what went wrong for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2025

Former India player Aakash Chopra has picked the Delhi Capitals' (DC) opening issues as one of the reasons behind their underwhelming run in IPL 2025. He pointed out that the Delhi-based franchise tried to fit in KL Rahul in the available slot after giving the other batters their preferred positions.

The Delhi Capitals won their first four games in IPL 2025. However, they failed to qualify for the playoffs, winning only three of their last 10 games, with their away clash against the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) not yielding a result due to rain.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener opined that the Delhi Capitals' opening conundrum was one of their biggest stumbling blocks in IPL 2025, highlighting that they were too late in making Rahul bat at the top of the order.

"One thing that went against them was that they were unable to figure out whom they should open with. They were actually winning until Jake Fraser-McGurk was playing, but they had no option but to drop him. They had to go with seven different opening combinations. They tried everyone, but it didn't work out for them," Chopra said (1:25).

"They realized right at the very end that they should think about what's right for KL Rahul because they used to think about what's right for the others. They left the breadcrumbs for KL Rahul as he would manage," he added.

Jake Fraser-McGurk had a dismal run at the top of the order in IPL 2025, aggregating 55 runs at an average of 9.17 in six innings. KL Rahul (539 runs at an average of 53.90 in 13 innings) was the Delhi Capitals' highest run-scorer this season, but was predominantly made to bat in the middle order.

"Some amount of arrogance also hit this team" - Aakash Chopra on the Delhi Capitals' other issues in IPL 2025

In the same video, Aakash Chopra reckoned that the Delhi Capitals' reluctance to pick a replacement for Harry Brook also contributed to their downfall.

"Some amount of arrogance also hit this team because Harry Brook wasn't coming. However, they didn't take anyone else. They didn't even think about taking anyone. Dewald Brevis was available, but they said they didn't need him. It was too late by the time they took (Sediqullah) Atal and played him," he said (2:30).

While observing that DC picked too many top-order batters in the IPL 2025 auction, the cricketer-turned-commentator added that the franchise didn't use the in-form Ashutosh Sharma effectively.

"They didn't have an idea about what needed to be done in the batting order because they had assembled all top-order batters in the auction. Everyone wanted to bat in the top three, but how many can? Ashutosh Sharma had form, but they weren't using him properly," Chopra noted.

To conclude, Aakash Chopra pointed out that the Delhi Capitals didn't play T Natarajan virtually throughout IPL 2025. He also questioned the think tank for giving the left-arm pacer the new ball when he was included in the XI.

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