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A sensational innings from Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, followed by a clinical all-round performance from Rajasthan Royals, knocked Sunrisers Hyderabad out of IPL 2026. The young batter came agonisingly close to breaking Chris Gayle’s record for the fastest century in IPL history as he tore apart the SRH bowling attack and put RR in complete control within the first eight overs.
By the time Sooryavanshi was dismissed, Rajasthan had already raced to 125 runs in just eight overs and looked set for an even bigger total. Dhruv Jurel later added a valuable half-century as RR eventually posted a massive 243 on the board. In fact, had they not lost wickets in clusters towards the end, the Royals could easily have crossed the 260-run mark.
In reply, Sunrisers Hyderabad never truly recovered after Jofra Archer struck early and dismantled the top order inside the powerplay. Heinrich Klaasen also failed to make an impact, falling lbw to Punja while attempting an audacious shot. Although the lower middle order tried to launch a counterattack, wickets kept falling at regular intervals.
SRH eventually fizzled out in the chase and fell short by 47 runs, ending their IPL 2026 campaign, while Rajasthan Royals marched into Qualifier 2 with a commanding victory.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi misses out on a 100 as he is caught at 97
Vaibhav Suryavanshi is unstoppable and he is just dealing in sixes now. Moves into the 90s
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi notches up a brilliant FIFTY!
He is taking on Pat Cummins and has hammered back to back maximums against him now
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is taking on the bowlers straight away, he has already moved 17 off 6
Sunrisers Hyderabad opt to bowl
Here are the Impact substitutes for both the teams:
Sunrisers Hyderabad Impact subs: Salil Arora, Aniket Verma, Liam Livingstone, Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel
Rajasthan Royals Impact subs: Shubham Dubey, Sushant Mishra, Aman Rao Perala, Ravi Bishnoi, Tushar Deshpande
Teams:
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan(w), Heinrich Klaasen, Smaran Ravichandran, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Pat Cummins(c), Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Praful Hinge
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Donovan Ferreira, Dasun Shanaka, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja
Riyan Parag: We also would have bowled first as its a good chasing ground. this has been a good ground, as we have chased and defended. I am unfit to play. Even now we have no other options than to win, I am happy with the team performance if we play to our potential. Jaddu comes back in the XI, Dubey is the impact player
Pat Cummins: We are going to have a bowl first. (Does having played finals before help?) I’m not sure really. I think maybe if you’ve played a few, you feel a bit more relaxed about it. But yeah, I think the most important thing is you are coming off having played really good cricket, which our guys are doing. (Your message to the bowlers?) We like to keep it pretty simple. There might be one or two guys or moments where we feel like we need to have a good plan for, but outside of that, we just want to lean into guys’ strengths. (Any changes?) Hinge comes back in. (Have you thought about batting first?) Yes, I don’t think we’re that bothered, to be honest. We’ve won plenty of games batting first. Here seems to be a good chasing venue. Honestly, we had lost the toss it wouldn’t have mattered too much. But yeah, we’ll have a crack first with the ball.
Yash Raj Punja: (On his journey from a net bowler to lead spinner) It’s been great, sir. I have been trying to soak it all in but at the same time stay focused on the matches we have, take it one match at a time. The support staff and management have been great, and the captain has been guiding me well through every match. It truly has been an amazing journey. (On his preparations) Absolutely, sir. I like doing my homework before each match. In terms of preparation, there we certain tactical and bowling specifics we worked on in the pre-season. Once we nailed those coming into the season and focused on pre-match plans and trying to execute them. (Does height make him focus on pace rather the trajectory) I don’t think it makes things different for me. It might be slightly more challenging to toss the ball up, but overall, my height is an advantage because of the extra bounce I can extract from any wicket. (On comparisons with Anil Kumble) I think I saw him around today, but I haven’t had the chance to speak with him yet. I’m really hoping to. (Enjoying being called “Nam Huduga (Our boy)”) I think so, yeah. That’s what they calling me back home. It’s a lovely feeling.
Pitch and Conditions: “It is the Eliminator and we are in New Chandigarh. Right, so let’s just start with the dimension, because there is a bias; on my right is the longest side, 69 (meters). On my left is 63, straight down is 74. For the pitch, I’ve got Aaron Finch here, who is itching to put his pads on. Now, Finchy, obviously it looks like a really good one for batting, but is there anything for the bowlers though? Great question, Deep (Dasgupta). When you first looked at this wicket, it is absolutely flat. This is a beautiful wicket. I think anybody in the world would love to put their pads on and come out and attack from here. But what I’m thinking about is, two world-class fast bowlers, you’ve got Jofra Archer, you’ve got Pat Cummins in either side, can they get anything out of this wicket? I think that there’s enough here, with the brand-new ball, that there’s a couple of little bare patches. Maybe they can get some balls to skid. Maybe they can get some balls to seam. But that will not last very long. Fair enough, now talk about the toss. This is a chasing venue. But then, knockout game, what do you think? You win the toss on a good batting surface, bat first, is that an option as well? I don’t think it is. Just based on how good this surface looks, I don’t think it will change one bit over the 40 overs of the match. So, 201 is the average winning score here. I think you need to get a lot more than that if you bat first, because chasing later on, that’ll be the way to go. Well, you’ve heard him, chasing is the way to go.”
The IPL 2026 Eliminator promises a blockbuster clash as Sunrisers Hyderabad take on Rajasthan Royals at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on Tuesday. With a place in Qualifier 2 at stake, both teams enter this knockout encounter under immense pressure knowing that one defeat will end their title hopes.
Sunrisers Hyderabad head into the game with momentum firmly on their side. After a shaky start to the season, SRH transformed into one of the most dangerous teams in the tournament. Their turnaround began after a dominant win over Rajasthan earlier in the league stage, sparked by Praful Hinge’s stunning opening over where he picked up three wickets. Since then, SRH’s young bowling unit featuring Hinge, Sakib Hussain and Eshan Malinga has impressed consistently, while the experienced core of Pat Cummins, Heinrich Klaasen and Ishan Kishan has guided the side brilliantly.
Their batting lineup has also rediscovered its rhythm at the perfect time. Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head have once again become one of the most explosive opening pairs in the league, while Klaasen continues to be a destructive force in the middle order. SRH come into the Eliminator after comfortably defeating defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their final league game.
Rajasthan Royals, meanwhile, have endured a roller-coaster season. They started strongly with four consecutive wins before suffering a dramatic dip in form. However, the Royals bounced back just in time to sneak into the playoffs, thanks largely to a stunning innings from Vaibhav Sooryavanshi against Lucknow Super Giants and Jofra Archer’s all-round brilliance against Mumbai Indians.
When Rajasthan’s top order clicks, they look almost unstoppable. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi have provided explosive starts throughout the season, while Dhruv Jurel has impressed with his consistency in the middle order. Archer and Nandre Burger have also been exceptional with the new ball, often putting opposition batters under immediate pressure.
One of the biggest talking points ahead of the match remains SRH’s dominance over RR in recent years. Hyderabad lead the overall head-to-head record 14-9 and have won each of the last six meetings between the two sides. SRH have already beaten Rajasthan twice this season and will be aiming to complete a hat-trick of victories.
The battle between Jofra Archer and SRH’s openers could play a huge role in deciding the contest. Archer has been sensational in the powerplay this season, regularly striking early with pace and bounce. On the other hand, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma are known for attacking aggressively from ball one.
Another key phase could once again be the opening over. Earlier this season, Praful Hinge destroyed Rajasthan with a three-wicket opening over in one match, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi responded in the reverse fixture by smashing four sixes in the very first over against him. That early battle could once again set the tone in this high-pressure knockout encounter.
The conditions in Mullanpur are expected to favour batters. The venue has already witnessed several 200-plus totals this season, with the average first-innings score crossing 210 runs. While pacers have often gone for runs, spinners have managed to control the scoring slightly better during the middle overs.
SRH vs RR Head-to-Head Record
| Teams | Matches | SRH Wins | RR Wins |
| SRH vs RR | 23 | 14 | 9 |
Recent Form Between SRH and RR
| Season | Winner |
| IPL 2026 | SRH |
| IPL 2026 | SRH |
| IPL 2025 | SRH |
| IPL 2024 | SRH |
| IPL 2023 | SRH |
| IPL 2022 | SRH |
Key Players To Watch
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | Rajasthan Royals |
| Travis Head | Yashasvi Jaiswal |
| Abhishek Sharma | Vaibhav Sooryavanshi |
| Heinrich Klaasen | Dhruv Jurel |
| Pat Cummins | Jofra Archer |
| Ishan Kishan | Riyan Parag |
Probable Playing XI
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Smaran Ravichandran, Pat Cummins (c), Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Harshal Patel/Praful Hinge
Rajasthan Royals
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Dasun Shanaka, Donovan Ferreira, Jofra Archer, Ravindra Jadeja/Ravi Bishnoi, Nandre Burger, Yash Raj Punja, Brijesh Sharma
