Who Is Dev Chaudhary, the New Delhi Tigers Batter at the Centre of DPL 2026 Controversy?

Dev Chaudhary has become one of the most talked about names in the Delhi Premier League (DPL 2026), but not for reasons any cricketer would hope for. The DPL has been under scrutiny after the relatively unknown batter attracted a lot of attention for reasons away from his performances in the tournament.

Who is Dev Chaudhary?

Dev Chaudhary is a 22-year old uncapped domestic cricketer. His sudden entry into DPL surprised fans. Before playing for the New Delhi Tigers, there was almost no record of him playing senior level cricket. The only official record of him was his name in a DDCA Under-19 trial list in 2021.

Reports said that he had played a few local DDCA league matches for Sporting Club.

In that official trial listing, he was recorded as an all-rounder who batted in the middle-order and bowled right-arm medium-pace/seam. Despite those registered attributes as a middle-order player, he raised eyebrows when he was deployed directly as a top-order opening batter in the DPL.

His Performances in DPL 2026

Dev Chaudhary was expected to bat lower down the order for New Delhi Tigers. However, he was given a chance to open the batting. He played two innings and scored only 16 runs from 26 balls before he was dropped from the playing XI.

Against South Delhi Superstarz, Dev Chaudhary was dismissed for a two ball duck on his debut.

In the second match against West Delhi Lions, he scored 16 runs from 24 balls. He struggled to hit the ball and also played five dot balls in a row during the powerplay against a spinner.

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Dev Chaudhary’s Performance Comes Under Question

The controversy grew after his unusual batting stance and poor batting attracted attention on social media. His inability to score runs also raised questions, including playing five dot balls against a spinner during the powerplay in his second match.

Why the hell would a franchise pay 1 lakh for Dev Chaudhary? What exactly are they seeing here? There are talented young cricketers grinding every single day, waiting for one chance, while players like this are getting picked and taking up those spots. pic.twitter.com/0MRUzNFdk4
— Vipin Tiwari (@Vipintiwari952) August 25, 2026

Chaudhary also had trouble taking easy catches during a fielding session.

A new video has surfaced showing Dev Chaudhary, the player accused of securing a spot in the Delhi Premier League through improper means, drops a catch and started shouting at his coach 😂

A must watch video 👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/svWbs1R5TX
— Richard Kettlebourogh Fans (@RichKettle07) August 25, 2026

Controversial Rule of DPL 2026

This season, the DPL allowed each of the eight teams to pick three players outside the auction. The players had to have played at least five DDCA League matches.

Some DDCA Apex Council members had opposed this rule as they feared it could lead to favouritism and the selection of players who did not deserve a place.

Interestingly, Dev Chaudhary is working under Rajkumar Sharma at New Delhi Tigers. Sharma is the head coach of the team and also coached Virat Kohli during his early years in cricket.

The team won only one match and lost nine matches in the league stage of DPL 2026.

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