SRH vs RR Toss Update, IPL 2026: Pat Cummins Returns as Sunrisers Hyderabad Elect to Bowl First Against Rajasthan Royals

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) won the toss and opted to bowl first against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 36th match of IPL 2026 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Saturday.

SRH captain Pat Cummins returned to lead the side for the first time this season. He replaced Dilshan Madushanka in the playing XI, while Praful Hinge came in for Harsh Dubey.

SRH enter this match after a strong win over Delhi Capitals. The team has won four out of seven matches and currently sits fourth in the points table with eight points and a healthy net run rate of +0.820.

Rajasthan Royals also come into this fixture on the back of a convincing victory against Lucknow Super Giants. They have won five out of seven matches, sitting second on the table with 10 points and a net run rate of +0.790.

Speaking after winning the toss, Cummins said the decision to bowl first was based on the pitch conditions and confidence in the chase.

“We’re going to have a bowl first. The wicket looks good, but we have to see what we need to chase down. It’s still fresh. I’ve had good preparation and a couple of practice sessions here. I haven’t played a game for a while, but the body feels awesome,” Cummins said.

He also praised SRH’s batting approach under Ishan Kishan’s leadership. “He’s fantastic. Four wins from the first seven games, and he’s played the aggressive, fearless style we want at SRH.”

On playing conditions, Cummins added, “We know the Hyderabad pitch well, but away games are always about reading conditions and knowing what’s a good score. This is the first game at this venue this season, so it’ll be a challenge for both teams.”

RR skipper Riyan Parag said they were also prepared to bat first. “We were looking to do that as well. We haven’t done well chasing in the last couple of seasons. We know this wicket well, and we had our camp here. There might be dew, but not too much. The middle order needs to step up.”

Playing XIs:

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Brijesh Sharma, Nandre Burger.
Impact Subs: Ravi Bishnoi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Shubham Dubey, Sandeep Sharma.

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivang Kumar, Sakib Hussain, Eshan Malinga, Praful Hinge.
Impact Subs: Travis Head, Smaran Ravichandran, Harsh Dubey, Liam Livingstone, Harshal Patel.