Delhi Capitals' IPL 2026 campaign is hanging by a thread after a crushing eight-wicket defeat to the Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday, and captain Axar Patel isn't sugarcoating the situation. In fact, he's already looking ahead to next season.

Batting first at home, DC could only muster 142/8 before KKR chased it down with embarrassing ease in just 14.2 overs. The star of the show was Finn Allen, who remained unbeaten on 100, while Cameron Green provided solid support with an unbeaten 33. The loss leaves Delhi stranded in eighth place with eight points from 11 matches, while KKR climbed to seventh with nine points from 10 games—their fourth straight win.

Speaking after the match, a candid Axar didn't hold back. "For now, we'll go back and think about the mistakes we made," he said. "But there's still a long journey ahead, and next year will come too. So we'll think about what plans we can make for next year and what approach we should take." He added that the team is already evaluating bench strength: "Based on that, we can look at the players sitting on the bench and decide who can be given opportunities."

The captain was blunt about where things went wrong, pointing fingers at both the batting and bowling units. "The runs were definitely below par, and at the same time, the spinners made quite a few mistakes," Axar explained. "Looking at the way the pitch behaved, I feel the spinners did make errors."

He also highlighted a recurring problem that's been plaguing DC all season: the middle-order collapse. "We lost five wickets in two or three overs, and that's where the momentum slipped away from us. The same thing happened against CSK—we started well, and then suddenly wickets kept falling."

So what's the fix? According to Axar, it's more mental than technical. "You can't solve it in a complicated way. It's more about applying the right mindset. Even if you lose one or two wickets, you still need to spend time at the crease and handle the pressure better."

For Delhi Capitals fans, the writing might be on the wall. With just three matches left and playoff hopes fading fast, the focus is shifting from this season to building for the next. And for a team that's been stuck in the middle of the pack, that "next year" conversation may have come sooner than anyone hoped.