IPL 2026 Squad Analysis: Can Sunrisers Hyderabad Clinch Their Second Title This Year?

Hyderabad: Sunrisers Hyderabad are all set to start their campaign in the IPL 2026 on March 28 with the clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on March 28. The team has managed to win only one title so far across 18 editions and will aim to win their second title in the history of the tournament. Last season, they finished in the sixth position, but they will look to change their fortune this time around.

What didn’t work out for SRH last season?

The top order of Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen delivered with the bat, but the lower order faield to capitalise on the starts they gave to the team. Also, the team kept shuffling batting positions in the lower middle order, which caused instability in the batting unit.

Also, in the spin department, two uncapped spinners - Harsh Dubey and Zeeshan Ansari. None of them was able to deliver with the spin bowling as they bowled with an economy rate of around 9.80, with the latter having a bowling average of 55.50. Thus, the lack of an elite spin option meant that they were unable to contain teams in the middle overs.

Releases ahead of IPL 2026 mini auction and additions

The franchise released multiple players, including Abhinav Manohar, who was part of their playing XI in most of the matches. The Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa was released, while Mohammad Shami was traded to Lucknow Super Giants.

In the bidding process, they added Liam Livingstone for a price of ₹13 Crores and also added Australian all-rounder Jack Edwards for ₹3 Crores. The other additions included Indian talents like Shivam Mavi and Salil Arora.

Strengths

Explosive top order - The team have a brilliant top five comprising four consistent batters in the form of Head, Abhishek, Kishan and Klaasen. Two of the Indian batters are coming into the tournament on the back of brilliant outings in the T20 World Cup. Also, all four of them scored more than 350 runs last season with a strike rate of at least 152. Thus, they form a strong batting core for the team.

Ultra-aggressive batting - SRH go with a template of ultra-aggressive batting in the IPL. They posted 200-plus total last season on five occasions. The team’s explosive approach helps them score big and defend the total. Their aggression also makes their ability to score a huge total a strength for the team, and they can change games just with their batting unit.

Weakness

Lack of a finisher - Although the team have brilliant top order batters, they still lack a proper finisher to go big in the death overs. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Aniket Verma are expected to bat in the lower order for the team, but neither of them is a proven finisher. Nitish has scored 100 runs in the death overs in the IPL with a strike rate of 175.4, but he has been dismissed on four occasions from nine innings.

Dependency on Pat Cummins of the bowling unit - With Cummins set to miss the initial stage of the IPL 2026, the pace attack looks weakened. The team will then rely on the duo of Harshal Patel and Jaydev Unadkat. With this, the team will lack a pacer who can be lethal in the power play and can be similarly effective in the fag end of the innings.

Lack of specialist spin option - The team has tried to cover that area with the addition of Livingstone, but they will still have to play either Zeeshan Ansari or Harsh Dubey, who are inexperienced. Last time, the same problem hurt them when both of the Indian uncapped bowlers gave a lacklustre performance.

Probable playing XI

Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Liam Livingstone, Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Aniket Verma, Pat Cummins, Jaydev Unadkat, Harshal Patel, Zeeshan Ansari

Impact sub: Harsh Dubey

Key matchups for SRH batters

Three batters - Head, Livingstone and Aniket struggle against the left-arm Chinaman bowlers. While Head has a strike rate of only 111.11 against the bowling type, the Indian talent has a poor record to show with an average of 5.5 and a strike rate of 91.7.

SRH bowlers at home venue (ETV Bharat)

Ishan Kishan and Nitish are strong against Right-arm off break, with the former scoring at a strike rate of 260.9 against the bowling type in powerplay, while Nitish amasses runs at a strike rate of 215.4 in the 10-20 overs against the bowling type. Also, if a team brings a left-arm seamer, he can take wickets of Abhishek and Kishan as they have a good strike rate against left-arm fast, but boast an average of just 12.7 and 10.3, respectively.

Players with brilliant numbers at home venue

SRH batters at home venue (ETV Bharat)

Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium will be the home venue for SRH, and they have players who are just outstanding at the venue. Klaasen has scored with an average of 55.82 and a strike rate of 182.74, while Jaydev Unadkat has picked 19 wickets from 14 matches with an economy of 7.50.