Rajasthan Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara believes his side will need to match Sunrisers Hyderabad’s aggressive style when the two teams meet in the IPL 2026 Eliminator on Wednesday.
Speaking after RR sealed their playoff spot with a win over Mumbai Indians, Sangakkara acknowledged the challenge posed by SRH’s explosive batting line-up and said Rajasthan would have to respond with intent in both bowling and execution.
“They bat well. They trust themselves to go hard and they’ve done it the whole tournament,” Sangakkara said. “We know what we’re going to face.”
The RR coach added that his bowlers would need to stay disciplined while still attacking their lengths against Hyderabad’s power-hitters.
Sangakkara also backed under-fire captain Riyan Parag, saying the franchise is ready to give him a long rope as a leader.
“I think I’ve seen very few players who have been criticised, like Riyan has been criticised for about seven years now. Ever since I came to the franchise, there’s always people who like Riyan, but there are a lot of people who didn’t really like him, especially on social media,” Sangakkara said.
“Having watched him, yes, he will grow. He will mature. He will understand himself a lot more. He will learn to understand his players a lot more. But even today, if you look at the calls he makes as captain, the confidence with which he does, he drags himself almost on one foot sometimes to come and play. There’s a huge amount of positives.”
“He has captained exceptionally well. He has led his team exceptionally well and when he’s in that dressing room, he’s got the respect of all the players and the staff. That’s all you can ask for.”
Sangakkara said Rajasthan Royals will continue to back Riyan as a leader.
“What happens in the next few years, it’s a really interesting relationship we have to build with the franchise and Riyan and really help him develop as a captain, as a batter, as a person, and keep supporting him.”
“He’s a very, very good young man. Sometimes what you see on the outside is not Riyan Parag. Riyan Parag is a lovely, soft, gentle, really determined, smart young man.”
(With PTI Inputs)
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