IPL 2026 | Match 36: RR vs SRH | Preview and Predictions
Match 36 of the 2026 IPL season will be played between the Rajasthan Royals and the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on 25th April 2026.
Here, we present our preview and predictions for the game.
Indian Premier League 2026 | Match 36: Rajasthan Royals vs SunRisers Hyderabad | 19:30 IST, 25 April 2026
The Rajasthan Royals are currently sitting in second spot in the league with five wins and two defeats from seven games. In their most recent fixture, they defended a relatively small total against the Lucknow Super Giants, returning to winning ways after two straight defeats.
Batting first, RR lost quick wickets in the powerplay with Mohammed Shami getting the scalps of the dangerous Yashasvi Jaiswal and an in-form Dhruv Jurel early. Riyan Parag and Shimron Hetmeyer then built a steady partnership but it was Ravindra Jadeja (43 not out off 29 balls) who helped his side reach a respectable total. At the end of the 20 overs, RR finished with 159/6. LSG’s pace bowling attack barring Mayank Yadav bowled particularly well with Mohsin Khan (2/17) and Prince Yadav (2/29) amongst the wickets as well. Coming back into the side after a lengthy gap, Mayank Yadav looked rusty and went away for a lot of runs at the end.
Chasing a fairly achievable target, the LSG batters failed to cope with the RR opening duo of Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger. LSG were struggling at 11/3 after 3 overs and couldn’t quite recover after that. Only opener Mitchell Marsh showed some intent with a half-century but he couldn’t find support from the other end as wickets kept falling under pressure. In the end, LSG were bowled out for a paltry 119, losing the match by a big margin of 40 runs. Archer bowled a superb spell taking 3/20 in his four overs.
As for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, their last game was against the Delhi Capitals. Opener Abhishek Sharma was the top-scorer in the game with a 135 not out off 68 balls, helping his side reach a mammoth 242/2. He got support from Travis Head and Heinrich Klassen, both of whom managed quick 30+ scores. All the DC bowlers got thrashed as the Indian southpaw hit 10 sixes and 10 fours in his innings.
Chasing a huge target is never easy and you need a big partnership to begin with but DC couldn’t find a quick start. Instead, Pathum Nissanka went early. Nitish Rana and KL Rahul did give it a proper go with Rana scoring his first half-century this season but a quick procession of wickets fell which put the Delhi Capitals on the backfoot. In the end, 240+ proved to be too much for the young DC middle order batters Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs who succumbed trying to up the ante with the required run-rate soaring beyond reach. DC finished on 195/9, losing the match by 47 runs. Eshan Malinga was the star with the ball taking 4/32 in his four over spell with Harsh Dubey also getting the late wickets and finishing with 3/12 in two overs.
Coming to this match-up, both teams have dangerous opening batters but RR is struggling with their middle order once the top order fails to deliver. As for SRH, their middle order has also performed with Heinrich Klassen, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Aniket Verma in decent form. Additionally, the return of Pat Cummins could be a welcome sight for the SRH team as he lends them a fine balance. However, having not played competitive cricket for a long time, Cummins may need some time to find his rhythm. From a bowling perspective, RR has a superior bowling attack to SRH both in terms of pacers and spinners.
Really difficult to call this but whichever team gets to bat first would need to put a 200+ score on the board to even have a chance to win this game. Looking at their form and their bowling attack being superior, we believe RR has an edge in this fixture.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klassen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Pat Cummins(c), Nandre Burger, Jofra Archer, Eshan Malinga
Venue: Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Winners Prediction: Rajasthan Royals
