Why Aquib Nabi not playing in SRH vs DC?

The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) play their third consecutive home game when they take on the Delhi Capitals (DC) in Match 31 of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Tuesday, April 21. 

The hosts come into the game on the back of two successive victories, against the Rajasthan Royals and the Chennai Super Kings. DC, on the other hand, won a dramatic game against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in their previous outing.

SRH vs DC: Toss Update

DC captain Axar Patel called the toss correctly and opted to bowl first in Hyderabad. The all-rounder is set to play in his 100th game for the franchise from the capital city. SRH captain Ishan Kishan, on the other hand, stated that the pitch is a little different from what they played on during their last two matches on home soil. 

Auqib Nabi misses out for DC, Nitish Rana comes in in the playing XI

DC have decided to leave out Auqib Nabi on the substitute’s bench in place of left-handed batter Nitish Rana. This could mainly be down to the lack of runs that Axar’s team have got from their number three. Karun Nair played in that position in their last game, but he misses out this time around. Nabi, meanwhile, is not the Impact Sub's bench for this game.

SRH vs DC: What did the captains say?

Axar Patel, DC captain

“We will bowl first. Luck is going well (on the toss); winning all matches would have been better. Thank you, I didn't think I would play 100 matches for DC. Hopefully, it'll end up with a win tonight. Obviously, to balance the team you need to understand how to balance your playing eleven in cricket, what kind of wicket you are getting, so according to the situation you balance the team. And obviously, when you have such a big squad, it becomes difficult to manage everyone, but at the same time you tell them that whatever contribution you make, you should think that you are doing it for the team. Whoever is sitting out, and whoever we select, we select the best eleven for the team. And in this way, the players also understand how the cricket game works — we can only play eleven players. One change: Nitish Rana replaces Aquib Nabi.”

Ishan Kishan, SRH captain:

“It's hard to decide right now because I don't think this is a similar kind of wicket which we played on for the previous two matches. Few changes, Madhushanka comes in, Hinge might miss out (we're still not very sure), Harsh Dubey is back, gives us a spin option as well. But yeah, it all depends on how it plays and how we, you know, go ahead about it. We have a few changes. they have been doing well. It's more about—not about the results—but about execution and their headspace. They have been in a good mindset, coming up with plans like I said earlier, and you know, that is what any captain wants from their young bowlers. So we'll take one match at a time, and I think they'll keep on executing the plans.”

SRH vs DC: Playing XI

Delhi Capitals:

Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul(w), Sameer Rizvi, Nitish Rana, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel(c), David Miller, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan, Lungi Ngidi

Sunrisers Hyderabad:

Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan(c), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora(w), Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivang Kumar, Harsh Dubey, Sakib Hussain, Eshan Malinga