Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has questioned Travis Head’s game awareness and shot selection as he blamed the Australian star for Sunrisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) poor performance against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2026 Eliminator in New Chandigarh.
Sunrisers Hyderabad were chasing a mammoth target of 244 runs in the IPL 2026 Eliminator and fans were expecting Head to play a big innings for the team against Rajasthan Royals. He started aggressively and scored 17 runs in just eight balls, but he could not carry this momentum forward.
Jofra Archer was already aggressive in the powerplay after taking two wickets. Even after this, instead of batting cautiously, Head tried to play a more aggressive shot by going outside the leg stump. And that decision proved costly for SRH in the knockout match on May 27.
Irfan Pathan questions Travis Head’s game awareness after RR storm into IPL 2026 Qualifier 2 after defeating SRH
After Rajasthan Royals qualified for Qualifier 2, Irfan Pathan slammed Travis Head for his careless shot and said the explosive Australian batsman should have shown better game awareness in such pressure situations. He also praised RR captain Riyan Parag for continuing with Archer for the third over in the powerplay as his strategy worked perfectly for them.
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Irfan Pathan, in a video posted on his YouTube channel, said: “Then came the third over. This is where strategies come in. Riyan Parag probably thought, ‘Jofra Archer, bowl your third over in the power play. You already have two wickets; now take one more. Travis Head is there; get him out. Klaasen is there too; get one of them out.'”
The former World Cup winner felt that the SRH opener failed to understand RR’s clear plan against him. Pathan further explained, “But what does Travis Head do? When runs are not being scored this season, he moves away from the stumps and creates space. Just play normally brother. Why not play normally? You know the opposition captain’s strategy is that the bowler who has taken wickets and is in form is given one more over to take wickets. You also know this. You are a senior player and a World Cup winner.”
How Jofra Archer’s 150.4 kmph rocket destroyed Travis Head in IPL 2026 eliminator
Meanwhile, Jofra Archer produced one of the biggest moments of the IPL 2026 Eliminator when he bowled a 150.4 kmph fast ball to dismiss Travis Head. The SRH opener tried to go outside the leg stump to hit another big shot, but Archer cleverly targeted the stumps with a precise delivery.
While trying to attack, Head completely missed the ball and the ball hit the upper part of the off stump. The stumps flew and Archer got his third wicket in the powerplay after dismissing Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan early in the innings.
Head’s wicket put Sunrisers Hyderabad in big trouble during the chase, and they never recovered before eventually being bowled out for 196 while chasing a mammoth target of 244 against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2026 Eliminator in New Chandigarh.
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Irfan Pathan criticizes Head’s “mind-fading” outing; Ryan Parag and Jofra Archer’s smart planning appreciated
Criticizing Head’s brain-fed moment, Pathan said the SRH opener took a poor decision by exposing his stumps while trying to attack. The cricket pundit also praised the smart planning of Archer and Riyan Parag and called it one of the turning points of the match.
He signed off by saying, “Travis Head’s lack of smart batting hurt Hyderabad badly. He completely exposed his stumps by going outside leg stump. Earlier, Jofra Archer had mostly been short of good length and well behind length.
But as soon as he saw the head going away, he aimed straight for the stumps and bowled him. This was Travis Head’s mind-blowing moment. It is here that the planning of Joffra Archer and Riyan Parag was executed very well. It was a huge moment in the match.”