IPL 2026: SRH hand sorry KKR their 2nd successive defeat
What's the story
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) tamed Kolkata Knight Riders in Match 6 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season. Ishan Kishan-led SRH scored 226/8 in their allotted overs. Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma were the stars of SRH's innings. In response, KKR faltered in the chase and bagged 161 runs (161/10). The match was played at Eden Gardens on Thursday. Here's more.
SRH
SRH off to a flier before losing three quick scalps
SRH got off to a blistering start with Abhishek and Travis Head taking on KKR's new-ball attack. The duo added 82 runs in less than five overs, with Head scoring 46 off 21 balls. However, after Head was dismissed by Kartik Tyagi, KKR pacer Blessing Muzarabani made a double strike in the eighth over by dismissing Abhishek and Ishan Kishan in quick succession.
Strategic alliance
Klaasen, Reddy add crucial 5th-wicket partnership
Despite the early setbacks, Klaasen and Nitish Kumar Reddy (39 off 24 balls) formed a crucial fifth-wicket partnership worth 82 runs. This was the second-highest for SRH at that position in IPL history. The duo took full advantage of any loose deliveries from the bowlers, with Reddy getting a lifeline from Chakaravarthy. Even after losing Nitish and Salil Arora to Vaibhav Arora, Klaasen kept going strong and completed his half-century.
Final overs
Four-fer for Muzarabani
Harsh Dubey contributed with a quick cameo, hitting back-to-back boundaries off Arora in the 19th over. Muzarabani returned to take two more wickets in the final over, including Klaasen, ending up with his first four-wicket haul in IPL. Besides Muzarabani, Vaibhav Arora bagged 2/47 and Kartik Tyagi managed 1/48. Despite the late strikes from KKR bowlers, SRH managed to cross the 220-mark on a pitch that was conducive for stroke play.
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KKR spinners Narine and Chakravarthy's flop show dent KKR
KKR spinners Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy's flop show dented KKR. Narine bowled 4 overs and conceded 39 runs. He failed to pick a single wicket. On the other hand, Chakravarthy bowled just 2 overs and went for 31 runs. He went wicketless for the 2nd game running.
Abhishek
Abhishek Sharma completes 100 IPL sixes for SRH
Abhishek slammed a brisk 48-run knock off 21 balls. He smashed 4 fours and 4 sixes. With his third six of the contest, he completed 100 IPL sixes for SRH. He now has 101 sixes from from 76 matches (73 innings). In addition, he has hit 175 fours. Notably, Abhishek became the 2nd SRH batter with 100-plus IPL sixes after David Warner (143). Abhishek owns 1,808 runs for SRH at 26.58.
Numbers
Abhishek's overall IPL and T20 numbers
Overall, Abhishek has smashed 106 sixes in IPL. Before playing for SRH, he made his IPL debut for Delhi Capitals in 2018. He played three matches and scored 63 runs. He smashed 5 sixes for DC that season. As per ESPNcricinfo, Abhishek has overall raced to 5,296 runs in 20 overs cricket. Playing his 183rd match (179 innings), he has hit 329 sixes. Meanwhile, he is closing in on 500 fours (497). He has 32 fifties and 8 hundreds.
Head
Head surpasses 450 fours in 20 overs cricket
Head slammed a fiery 46 off 21 balls. He smoked six fours and 3 sixes. With this effort, Head has amassed 4,609 runs in 20 overs cricket from 176 matches (170 innings) at 30.12. He went on to get past 450 fours (451). He also owns 213 sixes. In the IPL, Head has hit 1,203 runs from 40 matches at 34.37. His strike rate is 170.88.
Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen slams his 8th half-century in IPL
Klaasen smashed four fours and a six against the Knights. He has now raced to 1,563 runs from 51 IPL matches (47 innings) at 40.07. He clocked his 8th fifty (100s: 2). In the ongoing season, he has scored 83 runs while averaging 41.50. As per ESPNcricinfo, Klaasen now owns two fifties and a ton against KKR. From 10 matches, he has amassed 371 runs at 61.83. His strike rate is 180.09.
Muzarabani
2nd four-fer for Muzarabani in 20 overs cricket
In 2 IPL matches, Muzarabani (4/41) has picked 4 scalps at 18.75. His economy rate is on the higher side (10.71). Before this, he went wicketless against Mumbai Indians on IPL debut. Overall in the 20-over format, Muzarabani has claimed 159 scalps from 139 matches at 22.66. It's his 2nd four-fer in 20 overs cricket. Muzarabani is now the 2nd KKR bowler with a four-fer against SRH in the IPL. He joined Prasidh Krishna, who managed 4/30 in the 2018 edition.
Do you know?
Rinku Singh breaks this record of Andre Russell for KKR
Rinku Singh entered record books for the three-time IPL champions. Rinku became the most successful outfielder in terms of catches taken for the eastern giants. Rinku attained the mark with two catches. In 61 matches for KKR, Rinku owns 41 catches. Former KKR legend Andre Russell bagged 40 catches in 133 matches.
Chase
KKR fall apart in mammoth chase
KKR's Finn Allen provided the side with a breezy start, scoring 28 off 7 balls. Raghuvanshi walked in at number three (30/1) and made his intentions know from the start. He scored quick runs and forged two partnerships worth 37 and 46 alongside Ajinkya Rahane and Rinku. Just when things were going well, he was run out in the 11th over. KKR lost their way with his dismissal and perished for a score of 161 in 16 overs.
Allen
Allen attains this record
Allen smashed 24 runs in the first over of KKR's innings. As per Cricbuzz, he has now smashed the joint 2nd-most runs in an over in the IPL, equaling Prithvi Shaw (vs KKR, 2021). Yashasvi Jaiswal of Rajasthan Royals holds the record. He hit 26 runs also versus KKR in IPL 2023. Allen, who struck at 400, has 65 runs from 2 matches this season at 32.50 (SR: 270-plus).
Raghuvanshi
KKR's Angkrish Raghuvanshi slams successive fifties in IPL 2026
Raghuvanshi slammed a neat fifty against SRH. Notably, this was the youngester's 2nd successive fifty this season. Raghuvanshi's knock had six fours and 2 sixes. He consumed 29 balls (SR: 179.31). Across 2 IPL matches this season, he owns 103 runs at 51.50 (50s: 2). Overall in the tournament, the KKR player has amassed 566 runs from 24 matches (20 innings) at 31.44. Notably, this was his 4th fifty in the IPL. His strike rate is 149.73.
Rahane
Jaydev Unadkat dismisses Ajinkya Rahane for 5th time (IPL)
Rahane managed a 10-ball 8. He was dismissed by Unadkat. As per ESPNcricinfo, across 7 IPL innings, left-arm pacer Unadkat has now dismissed Rahane 5 times. Rahane has scored 36 runs off Undakat from 36 balls, striking at just 100. He has faced 18 dot balls and averages a dismal 7.20. Overall in 20 overs cricket, Rahane owns 38 runs off 41 balls against Undakat. His average is 7.6 (SR: 92.68).
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Rinku chips in with 35 runs
Rinku chipped in with a score of 35 runs off 25 balls. He smashed four fours and a six. Nitish Reddy dismissed Rinku at a crucial juncture. In 61 IPL matches (53 innings), Rinku has scored 1,167 runs at 31.54 (SR: 145.33).
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Unadkat claims a three-fer versus KKR
Unadkat finished with three wickets from 3 overs. He claimed 3/21 and has now got to 114 IPL scalps from 114 matches at 29.94. Versus KKR, the left-arm pacer owns 13 wickets from 15 games at 31.38.