IPL 2026 fallout: Five franchises that may appoint new captains next season

IPL 2026 has remained unforgettable for many prominent Indian captains; some failed to fill the big shoes whereas some failed to perform for the team and after a disastrous season, a few teams can look for new captains to lead from the front. Lucknow and Kolkata will be the keen ones to make a shift in their management and leadership roles as their captains didn’t really justify the role. On the other hand, a few teams are going through a transition phase, teams like the Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings have failed to gain success recently. Chennai Super Kings have failed to qualify for the third season in a row and Mumbai Indians have failed to win a cup since 2020.

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IPL captaincy is not a cup of tea for everyone as many of the things depend on the team's performance from fans to sponsors, everyone counts only success and if someone fails to perform the negative energy starts to cover the whole momentum. So, few teams can think of a new face.

Here is the list

Lucknow Super Giants

The Super Giants franchise will be eager to hand over the captaincy to someone else, they bought Rishabh Pant with a huge amount of 27cr, he did not really perform at that level for the second consecutive season, the Indian wicket keeper has failed to cross 300 runs in a season. Social media buzz and reports suggest that Lucknow will most likely be involved in a trade with the Delhi Capitals where they will trade Rishabh Pant in return for a big name. Though, it is not certain whether the trade will happen or not, there are very strong chances that the stalwart wicket keeper can lose his captaincy.

Mumbai Indians

In a bizarre move, the Mumbai Indians and the management who have not seen success in IPL for a very long time now can be a team that can replace their captain. After bringing in Hardik Pandya from the Gujarat Titans where he won the cup in his very first season and became runner-up in the very second season with the Gujarat Titans.

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Hardik Pandya left the legacy there and joined his previous team with an all-cash trade. In the last three seasons, Mumbai have only been able to qualify in the 2025 season other than that, the Mumbai Indians went through a rough patch. There are also speculations that senior players are not happy with Hardik Pandya’s inclusion. As per reports, it is believed he will be traded to somewhere else.

Delhi Capitals

Capitals under, Axar Patel looked very decent, though they have a. Very good team on paper they still failed to do well consecutively. They can move on from Axar Patel and bring in someone experienced.

Chennai Super Kings

The big shoes of MS Dhoni have not fit well in Ruturaj Gaikwad’s leg from having a decent season in 2024 to scrapping the whole roadmap of mega auction in 2026, Chennai has gone through tough times now. Chennai believes in continuity but the big responsibility is affecting Ruturaj as a batter. For Chennai batter Ruturaj’s role is also going to be important.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Last but not least, KKR is also likely to replace their captain with someone else as Rahane’s performance remained a big worry for KKR in the whole season.