The IPL trade window opened after the 2026 season and will remain open until one week before the mini-auction for the 2027 edition. The franchises use this opportunity to upgrade their squads before bringing in reinforcements at the auction. Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals have completed a player trade. Left-arm pacer T Natarajan will return to Sunrisers Hyderabad for the next season, while Zeeshan Ansari will don the Delhi Capitals’ jersey. The move was officially confirmed by the IPL through an advisory.
Sunrisers have acquired Natarajan’s services for the next edition for ₹5 crore. This is a significant reduction in his contract value. The Capitals bought him for ₹10.75 crore during the IPL 2025 auction. So, he has taken a pay cut of about 53.49%. On the other hand, Ansari will play for the Capitals at his existing fee of ₹40 lakh.
Natarajan returns to Sunrisers
This will be Natarajan’s second stint with the Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise. Before this, he was a part of the franchise from IPL 2020 to 2024. During the period, he represented them in 55 matches, picking up 65 wickets. Natarajan built his reputation as a specialist death bowler while developing an impressive repertoire of yorkers, slower balls and cutters during that stint.
Natarajan had a particularly good time in IPL 2024. He picked up 19 wickets in 14 matches at an average of 24.47 and an economy rate of 9.06. In a bowling attack led by Pat Cummins, Natarajan emerged as their highest wicket-taker. His presence was significant in their run to the final, where the Kolkata Knight Riders beat them.
After his successful time in Hyderabad, the Capitals bought him for ₹10.75 crore. The move was made to strengthen their death-overs bowling. However, in his first season, he could play only two matches for them as a fractured collarbone disrupted his campaign. In IPL 2026, he returned to feature in 10 games. Natarajan picked up only five wickets in the season at an average of 71.20, while conceding runs at an economy rate of 11.18.
Zeeshan to Delhi Capitals
The other part of this trade, Zeeshan Ansari, actually made his debut against the Capitals while playing for Hyderabad in IPL 2025. In his first match, he picked up the wickets of Jake Fraser-McGurk, Faf du Plessis and KL Rahul, while registering impressive figures of 3/42 from four overs. However, after that, in the next nine appearances, Ansari picked up only three wickets, finishing the season with six wickets at an average of 55.50 and an economy rate of 9.84.
The leg-spinner has put in some impressive shows in the domestic arena. He was part of the Meerut Mavericks in the UP T20 League in 2024 and 2025. In 2024, Ansari picked up 24 wickets and followed it up with 15 wickets in the 2025 season. He had a particularly good time in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26, where he picked up 21 wickets.
Notably, this is the second trade the Capitals have made since the end of the 2026 IPL season. Previously, they traded Kuldeep Yadav to Lucknow Super Giants for Rishabh Pant. Kuldeep played a significant role for the Capitals during his stay. In 65 appearances for them, the left-arm wrist-spinner picked up 72 wickets. His departure left a vacancy in the wrist-spin department. Although not a like-for-like replacement, Ansari will hope to fill Yadav’s shoes. His arrival also adds depth to a spin department that includes Axar Patel and Vipraj Nigam.