Delhi Capitals have signed Nitish Rana on a trade deal from the Rajasthan Royals ahead of the IPL 2026 retention deadline. Rana, who has represented Delhi in domestic cricket, is an experienced IPL campaigner. He captained Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2023, standing in for the injured Shreyas Iyer.
In exchange, Royals have added another overseas star in Donovan Ferreira, who recently captained South Africa in Pakistan. Ferreira is known for his exploits down the order, an area which Rajasthan struggled with last season.
It is yet another significant move by Rajasthan Royals who have been active in the trade market. The 2008 champions finished 9th, and traded Sanju Samson in exchange of Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran in a blockbuster IPL deal. Ferreira is another addition, having been part of the Royals set up earlier in his career.
The South African's addition means Rajasthan are likely to release heavy number of their overseas players. Fazalhaq Farooqi, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana and Kwena Maphaka all risk being shown the door. The addition of Sam Curran further increases their foreign player numbers, which they will cut down with releases.
As for Delhi, Nitish Rana represents a shrewd acquisition. DC have added an experienced top order batter to their ranks. Rana has opened and batted at No.3 and 4 in his career. The left-hander's acquisition could allow Delhi to let KL Rahul open the batting. A largely Indian batting unit allows further experimentation with their bowling attack.
