Will KKR be able to counter the bowler from SRH?
Both Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) started their seasons with three losses in their first four games, but their campaigns have since taken different turns. With five straight victories, SRH has surged back into form and appears to be one of the most successful teams in the 2026 Indian Premier League, while KKR is just starting to recover with its first two victories following a poor start. |
| Ajinkya Rahane exceeds expectations |
After a slow start to the season, Rinku Singh has emerged as KKR's most effective batter, playing a key role in those victories. He contributed three catches and an undefeated 83 off 51 in the Super Over victory over Lucknow Super Giants after hitting a pivotal half-century in the first victory over Rajasthan Royals. With 215 runs in eight innings, his performances have moved him to the top of the KKR run charts this season, highlighting the inconsistent performance of the rest of their hitting squad.
Notably, in the sixth and seventh overs of those two games, Rinku, their designated finisher, has been reaching the crease earlier than normal. However, he has had the most significant influence at the moment of death. However, KKR shouldn't become overly accustomed to that routine.
That strategy might not be sufficient against SRH. This season's most successful death-overs unit was formerly thought to be an inexperienced bowling attack. In the last overs, SRH has the best strike rate (9.6 balls per wicket) and economy rate (8.6). Because bowlers like Sakib Hussain, Praful Hinge, and Eshan Malinga have been so accurate with their yorkers, their side has the greatest ball-hitting-wicket rate of any team this season. At the end of the game, 25% of SRH's balls hit the stumps.
This makes it difficult for KKR to pull off a last-minute comeback and highlights the need for the hitters in and around Rinku to score before the final overs if they want to take on an SRH team that seems to be settled in every department. KKR will require more than a lift; their chances of making the playoffs are still slim.
May 3, 2026, 12:28 PM
In the spotlight
Despite one half of their opening partnership misfiring for the majority of the season, SRH's batting order has progressed smoothly. In his first eight games, Travis Head in particular had only scored one score over 40 and frequently found it difficult to get going, but everything changed against the Mumbai Indians. He demonstrated his purpose early on by hitting Trent Boult for three sixes in the third over. His bold six and four off Jasprit Bumrah was particularly noteworthy and essentially highlighted his return to form. Given that both SRH openers currently seem to be in peak shape, KKR should be concerned about his form as he ultimately concluded with 76 off 30 balls.Eight games into the season, KKR has failed to find its ideal beginning lineup. Despite playing in three games, Tim Seifert has had trouble making an impact, including back-to-back ducks. If Matheesha Pathirana recovers, KKR might be tempted to move Sunil Narine up the order once more or bring Finn Allen back into the starting lineup.
May 3, 2026, 12:48 PM
Just so you know, I was relieved and then persistent
Statistics show that catching errors have cost teams more money in IPL than they have in previous years. Have you read Shiva Jayaraman's piece?May 3, 2026, 1:19 PM
Is Pathirana going to play?
It is unlikely that SRH will alter their winning combination.Sunrisers Hyderabad (probable): 1 Travis Head, 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Ishan Kishan (wk), 4 Heinrich Klaasen, 5 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 6 Salil Arora, 7 Aniket Verma, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Harsh Dubey, 10 Eshan Malinga, 11 Praful Hinge, 12 Sakib Hussain
Despite being healthy and prepared, Matheesha Pathirana was not used by KKR against LSG. KKR bowling coach Tim Southee stated before Sunday's game that the team will "look at the conditions and make a decision for what works best for the side."
Kolkata Knight Riders (probable):1 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 2 Tim Seifert (wk), 3 Angkrish Raghuvanshi, 4 Cameron Green, 5 Rovman Powell, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Sunil Narine, 8 Anukul Roy, 9 Ramandeep Singh, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Kartik Tyagi, 12 Vaibhav Arora
May 3, 2026, 1:49 PM
The Super Over test
Last night, CSK defeated MI. After defeating them in Mumbai earlier in the season, this time in Chennai.Prior to the match, Piyush Chawla and Yash Jha formed Team MI, while Abhinav Mukund and Gaurav Sundararaman represented Team CSK. Check out the results of the Super Over test.
May 3, 2026, 2:14 PM
RS Ambrish is signed by SRH.
After SRH speedster Shivam Mavi was sidelined due to injury, India Under-19 all-rounder RS Ambrish made his way to the IPL. The India Under-19 team that won the 2026 Under-19 World Cup included Ambrish. With 11 wickets, he was India's top wicket-taker in the competition.May 3, 2026, 2:30 PM
Narine is about to reach a significant milestone.
Narine is just one IPL hit away from reaching 200 wickets. After Bhuvneshwar and Chahal, he is expected to be the third bowler to reach the milestone. Additionally, he is expected to become the first bowler in IPL history to take 200 wickets for a single side. WhaddaplayaHe represents the Knight Riders in the MLC, CPL, and ILT20 and is a true mainstay. If KKR is to defeat SRH today, its collaboration with a revitalised Varun Chakravarthy will be crucial.
May 3, 2026, 2:52 PM
Raghuvanshi performs workouts to keep
Raghuvanshi practices his keeping drills while wearing gloves during the warm-ups. Does this imply that Matheesha Pathirana will make her KKR debut and Tim Seifert will withdraw? What if Rahane and Narine opened? After missing KKR's last match against LSG, Pathirana has been bowling well at the nets since his injury, according to KKR bowling coach Tim Southee.May 3, 2026, 3:07 PM
SRH chooses to bat and gives Smaran his debut
SRH chooses to bat against KKR.On a steamy afternoon in Hyderabad, Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper Pat Cummins won the toss and decided to bat against Kolkata Knight Riders. They made two adjustments, one of which was mandated because Nitish Kumar Reddy was unwell. In his place, rising talent R Smaran of Karnataka made his IPL debut. Seam-bowling all-rounder Harshal Patel replaced left-arm fingerspinner Harsh Dubey.
Additionally, KKR made two changes: Manish Pandey took the place of all-rounder Ramandeep Singh, while Finn Allen replaced his fellow New Zealander, Tim Seifert. Matheesha Pathirana skipped another KKR match after missing the previous one against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). However, Pathirana has been bowling effectively at the nets, according to KKR bowling coach Tim Southee. Seifert's wicketkeeping gloves will be replaced by Angrish Raghuvanshi.
SRH will move up to the top of the points table if they win on Sunday, since they have won five straight games. When SRH defends their total later in the evening, Praful Hinge or Sakib Hussain will probably take over as their Impact Player. Allen will bat for KKR after coming off the Impact Subs bench.
SRH: 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Travis Head, 3 Ishan Kishan, 4 Heinrich Klaasen, 5 Salil Arora(wk), 6 Aniket Verma, 7 R Smaran, 8 Pat Cummins(capt), 9 Shivang Kumar, 10 Harshal Patel, 11 Eshan Malinga
Impact Subs: Praful Hinge, Harsh Dubey, Liam Livingstone, Sakib Hussain, Zeeshan Ansari
KKR: 1 Ajinkya Rahane(capt), 2 Angkrish Raghuvanshi(wk), 3 Cameron Green, 4 Rovman Powell, 5 Manish Pandey, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Anukul Roy, 8 Sunil Narine, 9 Vaibhav Arora, 10 Kartik Tyagi, 11 Varun Chakravarthy
Impact Subs: Finn Allen, Ramandeep Singh, Tejasvi Dahiya, Navdeep Saini, Tim Seifert
May 3, 2026, 3:31 PM
Narine starts the KKR bowling session
0 1 1 6 0 1Travishek is one of the top bowlers in the IPL and KKR's best bowler. Narine has only bowled the opening over in the IPL four times. Travishek scored just nine runs in the opening over. SRH is where measurements begin.
But in the second over, bowled by Arora, regular service resumed. Head cracks Arora for four fours by grabbing onto the available breadth. In the power play, Arora is also unable to control his line. In two overs, SRH is 26 for 0.
May 3, 2026, 3:40 PM
Narine is attacked by the head.
SRH attacks Narine in his second over after holding back in the first. Head takes it up and slog-sweeps it over square leg for six after he slides one into the pads. He blasts the spinner over mid-on four with the next delivery. By creating a swinging room, he tries another boundary but is unable to get it beyond the crowded offside infield. In his second over, Narine gives up 11 runs.May 3, 2026, 3:46 PM
Abhishek is taken out by Tyagi.
Tyagi rushes in and strikes the deck with greater force. He targets Abhishek's upper torso, slams it on a hard length, and cramps him with the pull. At midwicket, Abhishek flaps this 144.4 kph delivery to Green. Abhishek was dismissed for 15 off 10 balls. Tyagi draws a leading edge and increases the speed to 145 kph in an attempt to outpace Kishan, but Tyagi is overtaken. A few people in the audience had tense expressions.After just four overs, some balls are stopping from a comparable length while others are skidding on from this hard length.
May 3, 2026, 3:58 PM
SRH's Advantage
This season, SRH has scored 70 points or more in the power play six times in ten innings.In six overs, they are currently 71 for 1. Out of just 19 balls, Head has accounted for 42 of those. In the last over of the powerplay, Kishan also got going with a brace of fours.
Head hits a six off Varun over wide long-on to reach a 22-ball half-century in the following over. Klaasen adores it. From the SRH dugout, he enthusiastically celebrates the milestone.
May 3, 2026, 4:09 PM
Varun's head is hanging out.
In his opening over, Head hit Varun for a six and four. Head stepped and hit Varun over wide long-off for six in his second over after he made the mistake of being too full. In response, Head drags a catch to Green at deep midwicket as Varun hits a hard length. Head is stopped by Varun on 61 off 28 balls. He gives Head a back pat. A little relief for KKR.May 3, 2026, 4:19 PM
Powell does a screamer with one hand.
Powell is responsible for KKR's transformation from relief to delight. From deep midwicket, he tears over to his right. He leaps to his right, extends out, and emerges with the ball in his right hand as it appears to veer away from him. Despite his uncomfortable landing, he is still able to cling to the ball. A clean capture. A real candidate for the season's best catch. In the eleventh over, SRH is at 117 for 3 after Klaasen is dismissed for 11 off 8 balls. After Varun defeats rookie R Smaran, that quickly becomes 122 for 4.May 3, 2026, 4:39 PM
Varun scores three
Varun is returning to his best after a challenging start to the 2026 Indian Premier League and the T20 World Cup. He is hitting the uncomfortable, in-between length more frequently at high speeds and isn't providing many step-hits. In his last four games, Varun has taken at least two wickets. He limps off the field after finishing with 3 for 36 in his four overs today. In his follow-through, he had injured his ankle while trying to stop Kishan's drilled drive.May 3, 2026, 4:47 PM
Narine's historic wicket
Narine took 200 wickets in the IPL. He becomes the third bowler to reach the milestone overall and the first bowler from abroad. Additionally, he is the first bowler in the IPL to take 200 wickets for one team. He casts Arora for two to get there.Narine has an advancing Kishan holing out to long-off for 42 off 29 balls in the same over. SRH falters from 105 for 1 to 148 for 7.
May 3, 2026, 5:11 PM
SRH was fired for 165
For the first time this season, SRH was bowled out after losing nine wickets for sixty runs from 105 for 1. Powell describes the total as subpar. On a dry surface, Narine and Varun flourished, taking five wickets between them. Additionally, KKR has taken ten wickets in an innings for the first time this season.May 3, 2026, 5:43 PM
Cummins versus Allen
Finn Allen has emerged as an aggressive chaser in place of his close friend Tim Seifert. He had been harsh with Pat Cummins, the captain of SRH, hitting him for 27 off ten balls before Cummins had the final say. Allen's timing is disrupted when Cummins darts it on an in-between length on the centre and leg. Klaasen catches it when he chips it into the air to deep midwicket. Allen was dismissed for 29 off 13 balls. In four overs, KKR is 47 for 1.May 3, 2026, 5:49 PM
Abhishek performs two tasks.
On a pitch where scoring against slow bowlers is difficult, Abhishek opens the bowling for SRH after starting the batting. Some balls are halting from a good length or hard length, and there is just enough turn available. Abhishek concedes just 14 runs in his two powerplay overs despite the seamers' travels.May 3, 2026, 5:54 PM
KKR's potent powerplay
KKR scored 71 runs against SRH during the power play. In nine innings this IPL, KKR has just twice scored more runs during this phase. Earlier in the season, KKR had scored 78 for 1 against MI at the Wankhede and 74 for 3 against SRH at Eden Gardens.May 3, 2026, 6:22 PM
Raghuvanshi and Rahane construct for KKR.
Rahane and Raghuvanshi are perfectly suited for this mediocre objective. SRH has added Sakib Hussain as their Impact Player, but they don't have enough runs to play with. They can afford to just bunt the ball into the gaps and give KKR the victory. For KKR, this appears to be a cruise. Today marks the end of SRH's five-game winning streak.May 3, 2026, 6:43 PM
Sakib, an impact player, strikes.
In the eighth over, Sakib, who was brought in as SRH's Impact Player, rushes Rahane with speed and agility. Rahane scores 43 off 36 balls with a pull to square leg. With a set Raghuvanshi in the middle, KKR needs 33 off 30 balls. He's joined by Rinku.May 3, 2026, 6:56 PM
Raghuvanshi withdraws
After charging at Shivang Kumar, a left-arm wristspinner, Raghuvanshi chips a catch to long-off for 59 from 47 balls. 15 off 20 balls is what KKR needs. In the centre, Green joins Rinku. KKR is on track despite the unexpected turn of events.May 3, 2026, 7:11 PM
KKR triumphs!
Sunrisers Hyderabad 165 (Head 61, Kishan 42, Varun 3-36, Tyagi 2-30, Narine 2-31) were defeated by Kolkata Knight Riders 169 for 3 (Raghuvanshi 59, Rahane 43, Sakib 1-17) by seven wickets.Sunrisers Hyderabad's five-match winning run in the IPL 2026 was ended by Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine, who flourished on a slower-than-normal Hyderabad surface. SRH fell from 105 for 1 in the ninth over to 165 all out in 19 overs when Varun and Narine combined for five wickets. Narine became a member of the 200-wicket club in the IPL along the way.
With seven wickets and ten to spare, the Kolkata Knight Riders won their third straight game after shaving 71 runs off the mark during the powerplay. With a career-high 59 off 47 balls, Angkrish Raghuvanshi led the chase.
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