New Chandigarh: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) lock horns in the Eliminator of the IPL 2026 season at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, New Chandigarh, in Match 72 of the IPL 2026 season on Wednesday, 27 May at 7:30 PM. Both teams will be eyeing a crucial victory in this high-stakes encounter, aiming to move one step closer to the final and secure a place in Qualifier 2.
SRH narrowly missed a top-two finish after a heavy defeat against GT, which affected their net run rate. They now sit in 3rd position on the table with 18 points from 14 matches, securing 9 wins and 5 losses. They started their campaign on a shaky note but bounced back strongly. Their batting order is one of the most explosive and dangerous in the tournament, led by the fiery opening duo of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, followed by Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen, with a strong bowling attack led by captain Pat Cummins.
On the other hand, RR started their campaign strongly but faced a dip in the middle phase of the league. However, they managed to secure their place in the playoffs. They are currently in 4th position on the table with 16 points from 14 matches, with 8 wins and 6 losses. Their batting is led by the young sensation Vaibhav Sooriyavanshi, who has delivered incredible performances throughout the tournament, along with opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal. Their middle order has looked slightly inconsistent, which they need to address, while their bowling attack, led by Jofra Archer, has looked strong.
This clash will be particularly interesting as SRH’s explosive opening duo faces Jofra Archer and RR’s pace attack, along with the fearless batting of Vaibhav Sooriyavanshi.
Ahead of the high-stakes encounter, SRH captain Pat Cummins admitted that his side will have multiple bowling plans ready for the teenage sensation. Speaking in the pre-match press conference, Cummins said: “It’s always a balance of, as a bowler, understanding what you do well and how you’re going to bowl to your strengths. But when there are probably one or two players in every lineup who can take the game away from the opposition, you do spend a little bit longer working on a Plan B or Plan C,” Cummins said. “He got a hundred against us last time. I thought there were times when we actually bowled quite well to him and kept him quiet. At other times, he got away from us. So, we’ll learn from that,” he added.
In their previous meetings of the season, SRH won both encounters—by 57 runs in Hyderabad and by five wickets in Jaipur. The rivalry has tilted heavily in Hyderabad’s favour in recent years, with SRH winning six straight matches against RR since 2022. Overall, SRH hold the edge in the head-to-head contests, having played 23 matches against RR, winning 14 of them while RR have secured 9 victories.
Sunrisers Hyderabad Squad: Ishan Kishan, Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Harshal Patel, Liam Livingstone, Pat Cummins, Jaydev Unadkat, Aniket Verma, Smaran Ravichandran, Salil Arora, Kamindu Mendis, Harsh Dubey, Brydon Carse, Shivam Kumar, Krains Fuletra, David Payne, Zeeshan Ansari, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Onkar Tarmale, Amit Kumar, Praful Hinge, Shivam Mavi.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Salil Arora, Smaran Ravichandran, Pat Cummins (c), Harshal Patel, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain
Impact Player: Kamindu Mendis.
Rajasthan Royals Squad: Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Donovan Ferreira, Lhuan-Dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Aman Rao Perala, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Ravi Bishnoi, Sushant Mishra, Yash Raj Punja, Vignesh Puthur, Brijesh Sharma, Adam Milne, Kuldeep Sen, Sandeep Sharma, Nandre Burger.
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Dasun Shanaka, Donovan Ferreira, Shubham Dubey, Jofra Archer, Ravindra Jadeja, Nandre Burger, Yash Raj Punja
Impact Player: Ravi Bishnoi.
The weather in Chandigarh is expected to be extremely hot and mostly clear, with very little chance of rain. Temperatures are likely to remain between 38°C and 43°C during the evening, along with dry conditions and slight humidity later in the night. Overall, the forecast suggests uninterrupted play, with stable and favorable weather conditions throughout the match. The pitch at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium is expected to be batting-friendly with good bounce and pace, which should assist stroke play and favor high-scoring conditions. Fast bowlers may get some early movement, but as the match progresses, the surface is likely to become better for batting. Dew in the second innings could also make bowling more difficult later in the game. The clash promises to be highly exciting and intense, as both teams aim for victory and a place in Qualifier 2, while the losing side will be eliminated from the playoffs.
