IPL 2026: Why is Phil Salt not playing in DC vs RCB, Match 39?

Delhi Capitals (DC) host Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Match No. 39 of the 2026 Indian Premier League at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Monday, April 26.

Delhi Capitals come oN the back of a six-wicket loss to the Punjab Kings, where they failed to defend a mammoth 264. KL Rahul scored a magnificent unbeaten 152 off just 67 balls, the highest score by an Indian batter in the IPL. They sit at three wins and four losses at the halfway stage of their season and will be looking to rack up wins in the second half to make a claim for the playoffs.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru have once again looked like one of the stronger sides in IPL, and come on the back of a five-wicket victory against Gujarat Titans. They have five wins and two losses at the halfway stage of the season, and look comfortably set up for a strong finish.

The two teams met previously on April 18, where the Delhi Capitals handed the defending champions their only loss at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium as they chased down 175 after an impressive bowling performance led by spinners Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav.

DC vs RCB: Toss Update

Rajat Patidar won the toss and elected to field first, hoping to put the Capitals under pressure in the first innings on a high-scoring ground. He said that his team will aim to keep the same momentum going into the second half of the season.

Axar Patel said that he would have bowled first if he had won the toss, since chasing is much easier under lights. He stated that his team to seize the moments and continue working hard.

DC vs RCB: Salt misses out, Bethell fills

Phil Salt missed yet another game for the defending champions at the top of the order. Reasons for the English batter missing out have yet to be specified. Jacob Bethell is set to fill in at the top of the order once more for the defending champions. The defending champions are unchanged from their previous clash.

The Delhi Capitals have made three changes: New Zealand seamer Kyle Jamieson and 18-year-old opener Sahil Parakh made their debuts, coming in place of Mukesh Kumar and Pathum Nissanka, while Dushmanta Chameera returned to the squad as Lungi Ngidi misses the game due to his concussion from the clash against the Punjab Kings.

DC vs RCB: What did the captains say?

Rajat Patidar, RCB captain

 "We will bowl first, pretty obvious. It's a high scoring ground, it will not make any difference. We will try to put them under pressure while chasing. Most important thing is different players coming in different matches and doing the job for the team. We have played good cricket in the first half and we want to keep the same momentum in the second half. [on revenge against DC in Delhi] It's all in the past. We all are here to play good cricket. [team news] Same team."

Axar Patel, DC captain

"If I had won the toss, I would have bowled. Chasing is easy in the evening and the ground is small as well. Obviously, scoring 264 and losing, you can just give confidence to the team. We did well while batting and bowling, just needed to grab our chances. Need to be mentally strong. I think you need to continue doing things well. You have to follow the process and work hard. 3 changes, 2 fast bowlers Kyle Jamieson, Dushmantha Chameera are in. Opener Sahil is also in, making his debut. We are trying to take wickets in powerplay. Mukesh Kumar got enough chances, but we want to use an international bowler and hence using Kyle in the powerplay."

Playing 11s

Dehi Capitals (DC):

Sahil Parakh, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel (capt), Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Kyle Jamieson

Impact Substitutes: Auqib Nabi, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Tripurana Vijay, Abishek Porel

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB):

Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam, Suyash Sharma

Impact Substitutes: Jacob Bethell, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer