Who is Madhav Tiwari? Madhya Pradesh all-rounder with no domestic experience and just one IPL game in kitty

Delhi Capitals (DC) on Monday made as many as five changes for their crucial IPL 2026 match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Dharamsala.

The inclusion of 21-year-old Madhav Tiwari was one of them, as he gets ready to play his first match of the season.

Unlike a few other young and upcoming cricketers, Madhav Tiwari has not had any prior domestic experience, and has played just one IPL game so far. The bowling all-rounder was acquired by Delhi Capitals for ₹40 lakh at the IPL 2025 mega auction.

He made his IPL debut in a match against Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium in 2025, and scored just three runs while batting at number 8. He, however, did not get to bowl in that match.

Madhav has played with Sunrisers Hyderabad's Aniket Verma in the 2025 Madhya Pradesh T20 League for Bhopal Leopards. The team was captained by Gujarat Titans pacer Arshad Khan.

Madhav scored 108 runs from five innings at a strike-rate of 180, and hit one half-century. He slammed 65 runs from 31 balls in the semi-finals against Rewa Jaguars, and helped Bhopal Leopards reach the final. Madhav Tiwari is yet to make his First-Class and List-A debuts.

Even though he is yet to play senior domestic cricket for his state, he has played for the Madhya Pradesh U-19 and U-23 teams. He played in the CK Nayudu Trophy in the 2024-25 season and scored two half-centuries in the tournament. 

The Axar Patel-led side are in eighth place with eight points from 11 matches, and a loss in either of the three matches will eliminate DC.

"We will play our brand of cricket and don't worry about the result. Win or lose, we'll look to play a good brand of wicket. It's a fresh wicket, the new ball might do a bit and we want to let them bat first. Five changes for us," Axar Patel said at the toss on Monday.

After Monday’s match, Delhi Capitals will take on Rajasthan Royals (17 May) and Kolkata Knight Riders (24 May) in New Delhi and Kolkata respectively.