Brief scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad (242/2 in 20 ov) beat Delhi Capitals (195/9 in 20 ov) by 47 runs.
SRH vs DC, IPL 2026: HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD
Hyderabad is always in the conversation when it comes to being one of the food capitals of India. Be it the biriyani or the kebabs, more than the taste, it is the aroma that draws people in. On Tuesday, Abhishek Sharma decided to step in as the main chef and served up a special that left the Orange Army asking for seconds and Delhi Capitals with a bitter aftertaste.
Abhishek’s unbeaten 135 off 68 balls ensured that SRH secured their third win of the season and brought themselves back into the conversation for the Playoff spots. But for Delhi Capitals, it was a combination of poor captaincy calls with the ball and a lack of fire with the bat in the powerplay that ended their chances of a win.
For SRH, the bowlers once again stepped up on a belter of a track, using slower deliveries and clever variations to ensure DC were never truly in the hunt for the target.
Eshan Malinga was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4 for 32 in his four overs and was well-supported by Sakib Hussain and Dilshan Madhushanka early on before Harsh Dubey picked up three wickets for 12 in his two overs, as Delhi failed to continue the momentum from their win against RCB. Hyderabad moved to the third spot above RR in the points table with their third consecutive win.
DC LOSE FIRE EARLY IN CHASE
DC started their chase in a slow manner before KL Rahul decided to take on Nitish Reddy in the second over, getting 13 runs from it.
But they suffered an early jolt as Pathum Nissanka fell to his compatriot Dilshan Madhushanka. Nitish Rana started off with a boundary and took on the job of scoring quickly, punishing Reddy for 16 runs in the third over of the innings.
However, much like being stuck in Delhi traffic, the DC innings soon slowed down, with just 14 coming off the final two overs of the powerplay. The block that formed between overs 5 to 7 essentially left Delhi chasing the contest for the rest of the innings.
This was the phase where they needed to set the platform for the chase. But Delhi managed just 59 runs, with Rahul sitting on 22 off 13.
It was probably the moment for Rahul to either go big or go home, but the boundaries started to dry up. Nitish took on the responsibility of pushing the run-rate up, taking on young spinner Shivang and getting 19 off the eighth over.
Rahul finally found some relief with a six off Reddy, but it was the final flourish before his flame was extinguished. Sakib Hussain got his man, and that triggered a mini collapse for the visitors.
Nitish got to his fifty to show there was still life in the chase, but he fell right after Rahul’s wicket. And the Orange Army had even more to cheer about as Malinga cleaned up David Miller for a duck.
Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs tried to rescue the game with their 59-run stand, but once the latter fell, the contest was well and truly done. Rizvi continued to wage a lone battle in the end, but he lost partners as Ashutosh Sharma and Axar Patel struggled.
It was surprising to see Axar, who usually backs himself as a batter come in later and was dismissed in the final over by Dubey.
AXAR, DC LEFT TO RUE POOR CALLS
The discussion about teams being adamant about going with matchups is something we have seen a lot in the IPL this season. If you look at the PBKS vs LSG game on Sunday, Rishabh Pant became a victim of it by allowing Priyansh Arya and Cooper Connolly to go berserk.
At the Uppal, Axar Patel won the toss and opted to bowl first, knowing that the ground is a high-scoring one and believing his side would have the advantage of batting second with a bit of weather around.
The first over was bowled by Mukesh Kumar, but then everyone was surprised to see Nitish Rana come on in the second over. But the thinking was clear: Abhishek had struggled against off-spin in the T20 World Cup 2026.
But Abhishek outsmarted DC by allowing himself time against Rana, who is nothing more than a part-timer. In fact, it was the first time in 13 matches that the Delhi batter was rolling his arm over.
And his second over was proof that Axar had made a miscalculation, as Abhishek and Travis Head smashed him for three sixes and 20 runs came off the over.
If the DC skipper wanted spin early, he had the option of bringing himself on or using Kuldeep Yadav against Travishek. By the time DC tried to do some damage control, SRH had already raced to 67 in the powerplay.
Axar and Kuldeep came in with Abhishek well set and Head showing signs of a renaissance. The DC skipper was hit for a couple of sixes by Travishek before he sent the Aussie opener back to the pavilion.
Nitish’s third over was less costly, but it was almost like Abhishek and Ishan Kishan were saving the smash show for Kuldeep Yadav. The left-arm wrist spinner conceded 22 runs in the 11th over, and Abhishek welcomed back his old Sunriser with a beautiful flick for six.
Mukesh’s attempt to contain the runs didn’t work either, as Abhishek collected 13 runs off his over.
Natarajan would have felt undone when he had a chance to dismiss Abhishek in the 14th over, as Nitish dropped a good chance. He was made to pay for it in the very next over, his final one, with Abhishek cashing in and getting to his hundred with a couple of sixes before unveiling a new celebration. At that moment, it almost felt like an answer to all the slogger remarks.
While Kishan was run out at the bowler’s end in unfortunate fashion, Abhishek ensured 23 came off Nitish’s final over of the match.
His figures: 4-0-55-0.
And this was only the second time that Nitish had bowled his full quota of overs in his IPL career.
Ngidi brought some order into proceedings with six runs off his third over, but by then, DC were already staring at a massive chase. And this was the second major slip-up that Axar and DC made. After bowling two overs in the powerplay, the in-form South African was only brought back after 15 overs were done.
Ngidi is known to be a partnership breaker, yet Axar held him back for the final five overs when run-scoring seemed easiest on the track.
Klaasen joined the act with a quickfire 37 to provide the final flourish as 20 runs came off the final over from Mukesh, and the score of 242 was posted.
In the end, Axar and Kuldeep bowled just two overs each, picking up one wicket and conceding 53 runs combined. Had the DC skipper backed himself or his spin partner earlier, the result may well have been different.
Either way, they now head home to welcome the big-hitting PBKS to the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday, April 25. On the same day, SRH will head to the Sawai Mansingh Stadium to face RR, hoping to carry this winning momentum forward.
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