He shouldn't, but that's not a guarantee. I've been asked for the card once when departing BOM. Not sure why, since it's never happened since. As such, I'd call Delta and ask their advice. Obviously they must have a procedure since I'm sure people buy tickets for others all the time (children and elderly parents are two groups that come immediately to mind).

One piece of uninformed advice: if possible, have your friend do OLCI. I think the odds of being asked for the CC will drop exponentially if he has his BPs already.