Delhi Capitals have traded T Natarajan to Sunrisers Hyderabad, with leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari moving in the opposite direction ahead of IPL 2027. Delhi may save money through this deal, but letting go of an Indian pacer with Natarajan’s rare skills is a major mistake that could hurt them in close matches.
Natarajan returns to SRH at a reported contract fee of ₹5 crore, down from his previous ₹10.75 crore deal. The financial benefit is clear. The cricketing decision is much harder to justify because Delhi have surrendered a specialist whose role will be difficult to fill.
T Natarajan’s SRH Record Shows His Match-Winning Ability
Natarajan took 65 wickets in 55 matches across his five playing seasons for SRH between 2020 and 2024. His record shows why Delhi should have looked beyond one disappointing campaign before deciding to let him go.
| IPL season | Matches | Wickets | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 16 | 16 | 8.02 |
| 2021 | 2 | 2 | 8.63 |
| 2022 | 11 | 18 | 9.44 |
| 2023 | 12 | 10 | 9.11 |
| 2024 | 14 | 19 | 9.06 |
| Total | 55 | 65 | — |
He took 16 wickets at an economy rate of 8.02 in 2020, followed by 18 wickets in 2022. His strongest season by wicket tally came in 2024, when he claimed 19 wickets at an average of 24.47.
That campaign included a match-winning spell of 4/19 against Delhi Capitals. Delhi had seen his ability to make an impact firsthand before signing him.
These figures cover his entire bowling workload, rather than only the death overs. They show that he delivered several productive seasons while carrying the responsibility of bowling during difficult stages of an innings.
Natarajan’s Last Season Was Poor, but Delhi Needed to Back His Skills
Natarajan’s IPL 2026 performance was disappointing, especially for a bowler of his experience.
| IPL 2026 statistic | Performance |
|---|---|
| Matches | 10 |
| Overs bowled | 31.5 |
| Wickets | 5 |
| Runs conceded | 356 |
| Bowling average | 71.20 |
| Economy rate | 11.18 |
| Best figures | 3/29 |
Five wickets in 10 matches and an economy rate above 11 were well below expectations. Those numbers deserved scrutiny, but they should not have erased the value of his established skills.
Injuries have interrupted Natarajan’s career, and his effectiveness depends on fitness and rhythm. However, experienced pacers with specialist skills often need backing through difficult periods. Delhi’s small boundaries and batting-friendly conditions also leave little margin for error.
The important question was whether Delhi had a better Indian option for his particular role. Letting him go without securing that replacement risks turning a poor individual season into a wider problem for the bowling attack.
Why the T Natarajan Trade Could Be So Costly
Natarajan remains one of the top death-over specialists in India’s domestic circuit. His value lies in a rare combination: Indian left-arm pace, yorkers, cutters and experience handling batters who are attacking every delivery.
A left-arm angle gives the attack variety. His yorkers can deny batters the space to swing freely, while his cutters offer a change of pace when the surface provides assistance. Executing those deliveries in the final overs requires control, confidence and experience.
Delhi cannot simply buy another Indian pacer and assume that he will perform the same job. Taking wickets with the new ball or succeeding in longer formats does not automatically make someone an effective T20 death bowler.
The auction makes this problem even harder to solve. Good Indian pacers are rarely available because franchises usually retain their strongest options. Teams understand how valuable they are to the balance of an IPL side and are reluctant to release them.
Even when a suitable bowler enters the auction, several franchises may compete for him. Having extra money therefore does not guarantee that Delhi can replace Natarajan’s skill set.
His Indian status also gave Delhi flexibility with their overseas selections. Replacing him with an overseas death bowler would use a place that could otherwise strengthen the batting or another part of the attack.
Delhi Have Created a Difficult Gap in Their Pace Attack
Natarajan’s departure increases the responsibility on Mukesh Kumar, Madhav Tiwari and Auqib Nabi. Delhi still have Indian pace options, but none can simply be assumed to replace his combination of left-arm variation and specialist death bowling.
On a flat pitch, the ability to execute a yorker or take pace off the ball can decide a match. Delhi have removed an experienced option for those situations and will now need someone else to take on that responsibility.
Mitchell Starc and Lungi Ngidi provide overseas pace, but depending more heavily on them creates selection pressure. Any fitness or availability issue would further expose the need for a reliable Indian specialist.
With Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel occupying the frontline spin positions, newly traded Zeeshan Ansari is unlikely to get even a chance in the playing XI. His arrival does nothing to address the death-bowling gap.
Delhi have let go of a match-winner with a rare skill set and brought in a bowler who may not even play. That is the verdict on this trade—and it is a shocking call.
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