IPL 2026 | Match 36: RR vs SRH | Preview and Predictions

Match 36 of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season will be played between the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on April 25, 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 Royals are currently sitting in second in the points table 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 (LSG) to return 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 Hetmyer then built a steady partnership, before Ravindra Jadeja (43* off 29) helped his side reach a respectable total.

At the end of the 20 overs, RR finished with 159/6. The LSG pacers, barring Mayank Yadav, bowled particularly well, with Mohsin Khan (2/17) and Prince Yadav (2/29) being economical and among wickets. Coming back into the side after a lengthy gap, Mayank Yadav looked rusty and went for a lot of runs.

Despite chasing a fairly achievable target, the LSG batters failed to cope with the RR opening pace duo of Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger. They found themselves struggling at 11/3 after three 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 despite chasing a modest target. Archer bowled a superb spell, taking 3/20 in his four overs.

As for the SunRisers, they faced the Delhi Capitals (DC) in their last outing. Opener Abhishek Sharma was the top scorer in the game with a sensational 135* off 68 balls, helping his side reach a mammoth 242/2. He got support from Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen, both of whom managed quick 30+ scores. All the DC bowlers got thrashed, as the Indian southpaw hit ten sixes and ten fours in his innings.

Chasing a huge target is never easy, and you need a big partnership up top to get things going, but DC couldn’t find that. Pathum Nissanka went early. Nitish Rana and KL Rahul tried to have a proper go, with Rana scoring his first half-century of the season, but a quick procession of wickets followed and put the Capitals on the back foot.

In the end, 240+ proved to be too much for the young DC middle-order batters. Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs succumbed trying to up the ante as the required run rate soared beyond reach. DC finished on 195/9, losing the match by 47 runs. Eshan Malinga was the star with the ball for SRH, taking 4/32 in his four-over spell, while Harsh Dubey also got some late wickets and finished with 3/12 in two overs.

Coming into this game, both teams have dangerous opening batters, though RR are struggling with their middle order. As for SRH, their middle order has fared well of late, with Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Aniket Verma in decent form.

Additionally, the return of Pat Cummins could be a welcome sight for SRH, as he will bring with him a fine balance of leadership, pace acumen, and ability to hit the ball lower down the order. However, having not played competitive cricket for a long time, Cummins may need some time to find his rhythm. From a bowling perspective, RR have a superior attack on paper both in terms of pacers and spinners.

This is a really difficult game to call. Whichever side gets to bat first will need to put a 200+ score on the board to have any chance of winning. Looking at their form as well as their bowling attack, we believe RR have an edge in this fixture.

Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Pat Cummins (c), Nandre Burger, Jofra Archer, Eshan Malinga

Venue: Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Winners Prediction: Rajasthan Royals