Delhi Capitals have confirmed the return of their star overseas pacer Lungi Ngidi after he recovered from a head injury sustained during their match against Punjab Kings in Delhi on April 25. The South African quick was seen bowling in the nets ahead of the franchise’s clash against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on May 1, in a video shared by DC on their social media handles.
Ngidi, who had been rushed to the hospital, appeared to have injured his head during PBKS’ chase. He suffered the blow while backpedalling from mid-off in an attempt to catch PBKS opener Priyansh Arya. However, he dropped the chance and fell backwards, hitting his head hard on the ground. He immediately clutched the back of his head in pain and was unable to get up.
Play was halted for a significant period as the physio and medical staff rushed onto the field to attend to Ngidi, who remained lying on the grass. His neck and head were stabilised with a brace before he was placed on a stretcher and taken away in an ambulance for further evaluation.
In the video shared by the franchise, New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson can be heard saying, “Ngidi is back, back again!”, before the clip transitions to Ngidi bowling at full intensity, hitting the stumps and celebrating with energy.
Ngidi missed DC’s defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru and, according to a Cricbuzz report, is likely to remain unavailable for the RR game as well due to ICC protocols. The report added that the ICC mandates a compulsory seven-day stand-down period for any player diagnosed with a concussion. It further noted that Ngidi has been advised to follow the same guideline, even though IPL 2026 playing conditions do not explicitly mention this rule.
