India, May 10 -- Delhi Capitals' IPL 2026 season has not collapsed dramatically. It has thinned out slowly, over quiet middle overs, missed moments, an inability to capitalise at home and a recurring inability to control games for long enough.

That much was evident in the honesty of their post-match press conference after another defeat pushed them towards the brink of elimination.

"We need to win patches," director of cricket, Venugopal Rao, said. "We couldn't win those small, small areas."

It was a simple line, but perhaps the most accurate explanation of Delhi's campaign. Mathematically, they are still not out until the next match but skipper Axar Patel, after the eight-wicket loss against Kolkata Knight Riders here on Friday, said ...