Rishabh Pant returns to Delhi Capitals, Kuldeep Yadav moves to LSG in blockbuster IPL trade
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Rishabh Pant returns to Delhi Capitals, Kuldeep Yadav moves to LSG in blockbuster IPL trade")
Pant returns to Delhi Capitals, Kuldeep moves to LSG in blockbuster IPL trade Photograph: (AFP)
In a blockbuster IPL trade, Rishabh Pant returns to Delhi Capitals on a revised INR 15Cr fee, while spinner Kuldeep Yadav joins LSG. Read details here.
In a blockbuster IPL trade ahead of the 2027 edition, Rishabh Pant has returned home to Delhi Capitals (DC) with Kuldeep Yadav joining the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Pant will be back playing for Delhi, for whom he made his IPL debut and represented them for nine seasons from 2016 to 2024. Lucknow bought Pant at the mega auction ahead of the 2025 edition for a record price of INR 27 crore, making him the most expensive player in the tournament’s auction history. While Pant took a significant cut for his switch to DC at a revised fee of INR 15 crore, Kuldeep moved to LSG for his current fee of INR 13.50 crore.
This financial gap leaves LSG with an extra INR 13.50 crore in their purse ahead of the upcoming mini-auction (INR 27cr - 13.50cr). Conversely, Delhi Capitals will see INR 1.50 crore deducted from their remaining balance.
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Meanwhile, Pant is the second high-profile player after Ravindra Jadeja to take a pay cut for a move to another franchise. Ahead of IPL 2026, Jadeja, playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), was part of a swap trade, which also included English all-rounder Sam Curran, moving to Rajasthan Royals, with Sanju Samson joining CSK. In 2022, CSK retained Jadeja for INR 18 crore, but his move to RR cost the inaugural champions INR 14 crore.
Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal wrote a thank-you note for Kuldeep, while welcoming his former franchise captain Pant with open arms.
“Dear Kuldeep thank you for your service over the last 5 years @DelhiCapitals you have been a core part of our team and you will be sorely missed. Go well - you are a champion player and I am sure you will do extremely well back in your home ground. Rishabh - Kiran and I are both happy to have you back at DC. Hope you can find your best form back home in Delhi. @IPL,” he wrote on his X handle.
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Meanwhile, both players struggled for their respective teams in IPL 2026. While Pant’s LSG finished at the bottom of the points table with just four wins from 14 matches, Kuldeep’s Delhi also failed to qualify for the playoffs. Personally, their performances were below par too.
Pant scored just 312 runs in 13 outings, striking at close to 140 (138.05), and Kuldeep returned with fewer wickets than the matches he played in, finishing with 10 scalps in 11 games. Overall, though, Kuldeep fared decently for Delhi, picking up 72 wickets in 65 outings at an economy of 8.24.
