Working to rectify gaps: Jaitley on Delhi’s poor Ranji show

It has been seven seasons since Delhi qualified for the knockout stages of the Ranji Trophy. Its last appearance was in the 2017-18 campaign, when Rishabh Pant and Co. went all the way to the final before losing to Vidarbha by nine wickets at the Holkar Stadium in Indore.

The latest edition in 2025-26 was arguably its nadir, with the seven-time champion failing to notch up a single victory in the group stage. The performance in the white-ball tournaments was only marginally better — it bowed out of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the group stage, but reached the quarterfinals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

The high point was offered by the women’s team, which won the Senior Women’s One-Day Trophy last week after defeating Railways by seven wickets in the final in Mohali.

“With the senior men’s team, we’re working on how to rectify the gaps that are appearing in the performances. We will hopefully address it in the next few weeks,” Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) president Rohan Jaitley told The Hindu.

Delhi’s Ayush Doseja in action during the Ranji Trophy match against Himachal Pradesh at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on October 27, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP

“There was a time when Delhi had its own problems on the administrative side. What we are seeing now is a recovery from those problems, but the smaller teams have grown further while you are sitting still. What we’re doing is trying to catch up.”

While Ayush Doseja (949 runs) and Sanat Sangwan (828) finished second and third in the highest run-getters’ list in the Ranji season, the bowling unit didn’t take 20 wickets in a game even once. The DDCA is currently conducting open bowling trials across age groups to identify talent.

Capitals to play all home games in Delhi

Jaitley, meanwhile, informed that Delhi Capitals will play all its home matches in the upcoming IPL season at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The last two editions had seen the franchise also host a few games in Visakhapatnam.