Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag once again won the toss and forced the batting-friendly Sunrisers Hyderabad team to bat first. Jofra Archer gave another solid start to the Royals by dismissing Abhishek Sharma on the very first ball of the spell.
Sunrisers Hyderabad is hosting another team at its home venue Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Sunrisers have not had a good record at home this season, as they have won only one match in the season, and that too at the Eden Gardens.
Rajasthan Royals is one of the two undefeated teams in this edition of the IPL, as they currently top the points table with 8 points from 4 matches, one more than Punjab Kings, who is also undefeated in the season.
Jofra Archer dismissed Abhishek Sharma for a golden duck.
Sunrisers’ dynamic opener Abhishek Sharma has struggled to maintain his consistency this season. The opening batsman has a great record in the powerplay and has one of the most destructive batting pairs with Travis Head.
What. A. Get started
Joffra Archer hits the first ball.
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However, Archer bowled a fast ball that beat him on pace, and the left-handed batsman, who has a habit of sending balls through the off side for sixes, edged the ball past the fielder at deep backward point.
After a stellar performance in the last game against Punjab Kings, the batsman was dismissed for a duck as he stepped into the net set by the Royals fast bowler and captain.
Abhishek Sharma scored a half-century in 18 balls in the last game.
Before coming into this game, Abhishek had top-scored in his last game at his original home ground, PCA New Stadium in New Chandigarh. During that game, it looked like the player had regained his 2025 form, which he had been missing since the start of the ICC T20 World Cup.
Abhishek Sharma hit the ball very hard and demolished the Punjab Kings bowling lineup to score the highest powerplay score of IPL 2026. He scored a half-century in 18 balls and hit five fours and four sixes in his fifty, taking his team to 105 runs within the powerplay.
Jofra Archer’s wicket on the very first ball
England fast bowler Jofra Archer has been one of RR’s most valuable assets in the IPL. He started the season well, as he often found himself between the wickets. Now he has developed a habit of taking wickets in the very first over of his spell.
Archer had dismissed Phil Salt with a bumper in the last game in Guwahati, and now he has done the trick once again for Riyan Parag by dismissing Abhishek Sharma, leaving him in a set trap. Archer is the most valuable asset for the Royals, especially with the new ball.
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