The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) ended Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) winning streak of four games, handing them a 57-run victory at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Monday, April 13.

Riyan Parag won the toss for the Royals on Monday and opted to bowl first. Jofra Archer once again struck with his first ball, this time dismissing the dangerous Abhishek Sharma. Travis Head looked scratchy during his run-a-ball 18. However, the 88-run partnership off 39 balls between Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen lit up the stadium.

Kishan unfortunately missed out on his second IPL century as Sandeep Sharma dismissed him for a 44-ball 91 in the 14th over. Klaasen contributed with a 26-ball 40, while Nitish Reddy and Salil Arora also played important cameos to take the hosts to 216/6 in 20 overs.

In reply, the Sunrisers started with a fresh new-ball pair, featuring Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain. Both right-arm pacers were making their IPL debuts. The brave call paid off immediately for the Sunrisers as Hinge dismissed Vaibhav Suryavanshi for a golden duck and followed it up with the wickets of Dhruv Jurel and Lhuan-dre Pretorius, all in the first over.

Sakib also chipped in with the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal in the following over. Hinge oozed confidence as he sent Parag packing in the third over. At 9/5 in three overs, it seemed that the match would get over early. However, Ravindra Jadeja and Donovan Ferreira showed excellent fight during a 118-run partnership off 72 balls. Jadeja made 45, while Ferreira finished on 69. Tushar Deshpande threw his bat around towards the end to score 25 off 11 balls. However, in the end, the visitors were bowled out for 159, losing the match by 57 runs.

Key Moments from Match 21 of IPL 2026:

Ishan Kishan leads from the front

When Ishan Kishan plays well, SRH looks like a much stronger team. The stand-in captain smashed 91 runs off just 44 balls, belting eight fours and six sixes. He finished with a strike rate of 206.82. Kishan’s blitzkrieg helped Sunrisers get into a strong position from where the lower-order batters could launch without having to worry about losing wickets. It was exactly the case on Monday, as the cameos from Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Salil Arora took the Orange Army to a 200-plus score.

Top five contribute five runs for RR

Rajasthan’s top-order, especially the opening pair came into the match on the back of some red-hot form. However, on Monday, both Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Suryavanshi flopped. The top five, comprising Yashasvi, Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, and Riyan Parag contributed just five runs in total. The inaugural champions failed to recover from these setbacks at the start of the run chase.

Praful Hinge, Sakib Hussain excel on debut

The SRH management deserves a lot of credit for showing the guts to field two rookie pacers, who made their debut in the league on Tuesday and took to it like duck to water. While Hinge finished with figures of 4/34 in four overs, Sakib ended with 4/24 in his four-over spell. The match was almost decided in the first over of the run chase when Hinge picked up three crucial wickets.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru registered a comfortable 18-run win at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 12, against the Mumbai Indians.

Hardik Pandya won the toss and opted to bowl first. However, the visitors threw the first punch with Phil Salt and Virat Kohli’s scintillating 120-run partnership off 65 balls. The former scored 78 off 36 balls, while the latter played second fiddle and finished with 50 off 38 balls.

Rajat Patidar played a blinder of a knock as his 17-ball half-century lit up the Wankhede Stadium and even the Mumbai Indians’ fans had to applaud the batting masterclass from the Bengaluru skipper. Tim David also played a fine cameo as the touring side finished on 240/4 in their 20 overs.

In reply, Mumbai Indians started well, with Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton taking the attack to the opposition bowlers. However, Rohit had to leave the field with a hamstring issue and this turned out to be a problem for Mumbai.

Suryakumar Yadav joined Rickelton in the middle but their partnership yielded only 15 runs off 11 balls. Suyash Sharma struck twice in the eighth over to send Rickelton and Tilak Varma back to the hut. Suryakumar was eventually dismissed for 33 off 22 balls in the 13th over.

Hardik Pandya scored 40 off 22 balls and gave the home fans some hope but Jacob Duffy ended his stay at the crease in the 15th over. Sherfane Rutherford single-handedly tried to take his team to an improbable win. However, Mumbai Indians needed runs from both ends, which they didn’t get. In the end, Rutherford finished unbeaten on 71 off 31 balls as Mumbai lost by 18 runs.

Talking Points

Phil Salt – Form is temporary, class is permanent 

There were a few concerns regarding Phil Salt’s form at the top of the order. He didn’t have a great T20 World Cup performance with the bat and in the first three games, he only contributed 54 runs. Some fans and experts were wondering whether it’s time to bring Jacob Bethell into the side in place of Salt. However, the RCB management backed the England wicketkeeper and it paid dividends. Salt amassed 78 off just 36 balls, hitting six fours and six sixes. The tourists never really looked back after the opening stand.

Jasprit Bumrah goes wicketless for the fourth consecutive game

Jasprit Bumrah has been economical, but Mumbai Indians would love to see their talismanic pacer getting among the wickets. The experienced campaigner has played four matches this season but the wickets column still remains empty. The five-time champions are missing a bowler who would get them wickets, either with the new ball or through the middle overs.

Rajat Patidar continues purple patch

What a tournament Rajat Patidar has been having. The RCB skipper led from the front last season and continues to do so in 2026. The 32-year-old promoted himself to No. 3 to continue from where Salt had left. He did them with aplomb, scoring 44 off the first 11 balls he faced. Eventually, the right-handed batter scored 53 off 20 balls, with the help of four fours and five sixes to help RCB dominate through the middle overs.

Who said what

Hardik Pandya, Mumbai Indians captain:

Yes (lost too many wickets) and at the same point of time, I think we conceded way too many (runs) as well. I think that was always going to be catch-up. I think in the last couple of games, as a bowling unit or even as a batting unit, we’ve been catching up in the game rather than leading the game. We really need to reflect, really need to see what best we can do and how we can get that momentum and that click which we require. We have a couple of days off from here and we will play again. To be very honest, now a lot of things need to be rethought. Definitely, it’s not working. A couple of games we have won the toss, but maybe we need to see what other options we have as a batting group or bowling group. Looking at the kind of wicket it’s playing, if we can bat well, that would be good. We still need to play good cricket, we need to bat well, we need to bowl well. If we do that, then irrespective of the toss, we will be fine. That’s what we are planning and talking about, how do we get some momentum in the powerplay. Because if you see, in both batting and bowling, we are kind of trying to catch up in the powerplay. As you said, a lot of options will be asked and explored. We will see what we can do in the next game. When we got him (Rutherford), it was always exciting for us. We always knew the kind of potential and the kind of power he has. The way he batted gives us extra cushion and at the same time confidence that if we want to make some changes or see what the team requires, we can definitely do that because of the way he’s batting.

Rajat Patidar, Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain:

I think, you know, whenever we come here in Mumbai, especially at this ground, the atmosphere, the fans, and playing along with them and playing in a full-packed stadium – that’s a different feeling. It was, I would say it’s a more clarity about every individual, I would say (on the strong batting). And the way Virat Bhai and Salt started the innings, I think that kept us in the driving seat. Then a good cameo by me and Tim (David), I think that was a pure team effort. To be honest, people used to say that I love playing spin, but if someone asks me, I would say I love playing pace. And playing pace on this track, I think it’s a very good track to play a fast bowler. So I think I love (facing) fast bowling. I don’t know yet, but I think he, I feel that he’s okay right now (on Virat Kohli).

Phil Salt, Player of the Match:

Honestly, I’ve got no idea myself. There are a few highs and a lot of lows, and you can’t ride both of them. Just stay as even as you can, and I’m just pleased I could come out and put a performance in for the lads. Yes, I’d say so (on his batting philosophy). Some of these grounds aren’t the most bowler-friendly, so you’ve got to keep the mentality that you’re going to keep going at the opposition. And then not forget your assets as a player. It’s about being a match-winner, isn’t it? I know I can’t get runs every game, nobody can. But if I can be as impactful as possible, then I’m on the right path. Really well (on RCB’s batting). And to be honest, we probably had a few more in the tank. I think, you know, in the second ten of our innings, they actually shut us down quite nicely at times. So, you know, promising signs for us as a batting unit. I think they bowled well then.

Chennai Super Kings registered a commanding 23-run victory over Delhi Capitals in Match No. 18 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on Saturday, April 11.

After being put into bat, CSK posted an imposing 212/2 in their 20 overs. Sanju Samson led from the front with a sensational unbeaten 115 off 56 balls, anchoring the innings with authority, while Ayush Mhatre provided excellent support with a brisk 59 off 36 before retiring out. Skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad could not get going, struggling with an 18-ball 15. Shivam Dube added the finishing touches with a quickfire unbeaten 20 off 10 balls, ensuring CSK crossed the 200-run mark comfortably.

In response, DC had a promising start but kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Pathum Nissanka got them going with a fluent 41 off 24, while KL Rahul and others failed to convert their starts. Despite the setbacks, Tristan Stubbs kept DC in the contest with a fighting 60 off 38 balls, holding the innings together.

Just when it seemed like DC could push the game deep, CSK bowlers struck at crucial intervals to shift the momentum. Jamie Overton led the charge with a brilliant four-wicket haul, dismantling the middle and lower order. He was well supported by Anshul Kamboj, who picked up three key wickets to keep the pressure intact. Khaleel Ahmed, Gurjapneet Singh and Noor Ahmad picked one wicket each.

Earlier, DC looked competitive during phases of the chase, but their inability to build partnerships hurt them. Despite Stubbs’ resistance, the required rate kept climbing, and CSK’s disciplined bowling ensured the visitors were bowled out for 189.

Below are the funniest memes from CSK vs DC in Match No. 18 of IPL 2026: