Delhi Capitals' Axar Patel Breaches IPL Code of Conduct

The Indian Premier League has imposed a fine of ₹12 lakh (approximately $14,000) on Delhi Capitals’ captain Axar Patel for failing to maintain the required over-rate during a match against Mumbai Indians at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

This marks the first time the Delhi Capitals have been charged with this offense. The violation falls under Article 2.22 of the IPL Code of Conduct, which penalizes captains for slow over-rates. Other captains who have faced similar charges include Mumbai Indians' Hardik Pandya, Rajasthan Royals' Sanju Samson, Lucknow Super Giants' Rishabh Pant, and Royal Challengers Bangalore's Rajat Patidar.

“Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel has been fined after his team maintained a slow over-rate during Match No. 29 of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 against Mumbai Indians at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. As this was his team’s first offense of the season under Article 2.22 of the IPL Code of Conduct, which pertains to minimum over-rate offenses, Patel was fined ₹12 lakh (approximately $14,000),” the IPL stated.

In the match, Delhi Capitals won the toss and invited MI to bat. Mumbai Indians posted a competitive total of 205/5 in their allotted 20 overs, thanks to contributions from Ryan Rickelton, Suryakumar Yadav, and Tilak Varma. In response, Delhi Capitals' Karun Nair scored 89 runs off 40 balls, including 12 fours and 5 sixes. However, DC fell short by 12 runs.

“We had the game in the bag. Some soft dismissals and bad shots in the middle order. You can't leave it to the batters in the lower order every time. Don't need to overthink; just one of those days. I was happy at the halfway stage. The ball was stopping initially, but it got better. And then, dew helped us further. Out of our three spinners, two can bowl in the powerplay and at death as well. Kuldeep is bowling unbelievably well. Need to forget this game from a batting point of view,” said Patel in the post-match presentation.