SRH in IPL 2026: A season of redemption and renewed belief

2026 appeared to quickly head in the same direction as 2025 did. SRH were blown away in their first game and then went on to lose two more in the next three. Skipper Pat Cummins wasn't available either with doubts remaining over his participation. But eventually, Cummins did return and the performances improved. In fact, SRH remained in contention for a top two spot at one point before settling for a place in the Eliminator - a clash that ended their campaign.

Nevertheless, 2026 will still be deemed a success given they didn't qualify for the playoffs in 2025. While they didn't reach the heights of 2024, SRH certainly can take a lot of positives heading into the final year of the cycle. Heinrich Klaasen was amongst the runs again, Nitish Reddy made contributions with both bat and ball and more importantly, SRH found two young uncapped Indian fast bowlers who could play pivotal roles for them in the future.

Heinrich Klaasen

The South African wasn't in great nick coming into the tournament. But he showcased why form is only temporary. Klaasen was at his absolute best in IPL 2026 and he was constantly battling it out with openers across teams for the Orange Cap despite batting in the middle order. For the first time in his IPL career, Klaasen made over 600 runs with only four players eventually finishing above him in the tournament.

SRH's over-reliance on their top four was once again highlighted in IPL 2026. Their success this season was largely built on what Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen did. Two of them scored over 600 runs in the season while Abhishek finished with 563. Even Travis Head, who had a middling campaign, managed to breach 400.

Sakib Hussain

Bought for just INR 30 lakh, Sakib Hussain managed to hit the headlines alongside Praful Hinge. The fact that they managed to nail down their spots ahead of seasoned campaigners like Jaydev Unadkat and Harshal Patel was even more impressive. Sakib in particular was very impressive with his variations and finished the campaign with 15 wickets from 11 games.

Liam Livingstone

Liam Livingstone featured just twice this season and didn't make an impression. He ended up being one of the most expensive bench warmers in IPL history given he was purchased for a massive price of INR 13 crore. Even though SRH had an overseas conundrum, the fact that Livingstone couldn't get into the team even when Cummins wasn't available tells a story.

244-run against MI at Wankhede

SRH proved that hunting down 229 against RR was no fluke by immediately backing it up with another mammoth run chase against Mumbai Indians. Chasing 244 at the Wankhede, SRH's batters put on a collective effort with even uncapped Salil Arora making an impact towards the end.

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Barring one bad outing against Gujarat Titans, SRH largely looked impressive despite not being billed as one of the favourites for the title. Their famed batting unit not only put up massive totals but were also adept at chasing targets. The well-executed chase at Chepauk was another reminder of their willingness to adapt. If one of their domestic talents can step up in 2027 in the middle order, SRH can fancy their chances.