Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will face each other in the sixth match of the ongoing Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026) on April 2 in Kolkata. This article covers KKR vs SRH match preview, including pitch report, weather forecast, head-to-head records, probable playing XI and live streaming details.
Both the teams Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have already played one match each in the ongoing IPL 2026. While SRH had a winning start to their season, defeating Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the IPL 2026 opener on March 28, KKR suffered a heavy defeat against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on March 29.
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Now, Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad are eager to revive their rivalry in the ongoing 2026 season. This time, SRH will be hungry to turn the tables, as KKR has been the toughest opponent for the franchise in the history of the tournament.
KKR vs SRH Match No. 6 IPL 2026 Preview:
Match Details:
match date: The sixth match of IPL 2026 will be played on Thursday, 2 April 2026.
venue: This match will be held at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Time: The match is scheduled to start at 7:30 pm Indian time.
KKR vs SRH Teams:
Kolkata Knight Riders –
Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Rahul Tripathi, Finn Allen, Tejashwi Singh, Tim Seifert, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Ramandeep Singh, Cameron Green, Sarthak Ranjan, Daksh Kamra, Rachin Ravindra, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik, Mathisha Pathirana, Karthik Tyagi, Akash Deep, Varun Chakraborty, Prashant Solanki.
Sunrisers Hyderabad-
Ishan Kishan, Aniket Verma, Smaran Ravichandran, Salil Arora, Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head, Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Harsh Dubey, Brydon Carse, Shivang Kumar, Cranes Phultra, Liam Livingstone, Jack Edwards, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Pat Cummins (captain), Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Malinga, Saqib Hussain, Omkar Tarmale, Amit Kumar, Prafulla Hinge, Shivam Mavi
KKR vs SRH Probable XI:
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicketkeeper), Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Blessing Muzarabani. Impact Player: Karthik Tyagi
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (WK/Captain), Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Salil Arora, Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Malinga. Impact Player: David Payne
Key Battles of KKR vs SRH 6th IPL 2026 Match:
Sunil Narine vs Travis Head
The clash between Sunil Narine and Travis Head will be one of the most exciting powerplay battles of the season. Both are known for their aggressive styles early on, but they bring completely different weapons to their respective teams.
Narine usually opens the bowling with his clever spin and unpredictable variations, while Head leads SRH’s aggressive powerplay approach and always likes to attack with the first ball. This fight will be interesting to watch as Head is extremely strong against speed, but has trouble against high quality spin.
In the 2024 season, he averaged 64.7 against fast bowlers, but only 29.0 against spinners. Overall, Head has scored just 17 runs in 16 balls against Narine and has been out once in T20s. Narine’s carrom ball and variations make him the ideal man to trouble Head.
Varun Chakraborty vs Heinrich Klaasen
The battle between Varun Chakraborty and Heinrich Klaasen in the middle overs will be important. Klaasen is SRH’s main finisher and one of the most dangerous batsmen of spin, but Chakravarthy is also KKR’s biggest weapon to stop him.
Chakravarthy uses his mystery spin and clever googlies to confuse batsmen like Klaasen. He is not afraid to give away some runs if it means taking a big wicket. This battle could decide whether SRH will proceed towards the mammoth score of 220 or not.
In their previous meetings, Klaasen has scored 35 runs off 20 balls against Chakravarthy and has also dismissed the spinner once.
Blessing Muzarabani vs Ishan Kishan
Blessing Muzarabani will be KKR’s new wonder weapon and his impact against SRH will decide the outcome. Ishan Kishan enjoys playing against fast bowlers but he often faces problems when the ball of a tall bowler rises rapidly. The 6’8” Muzarabani can generate extra bounce even with good length.
If the Zimbabwe star can push the ball into Kishan’s body and give him no room to swing freely, KKR can control the in-form Ishan. It is important to stop Kishan early as he is one of the main attackers of SRH, and once he settles down, he can take the game away from KKR.
Harshal Patel vs Rinku Singh
The fight between Harshal Patel and Rinku Singh is a classic death-over fight. Harshal is known for his slow slower balls, while Rinku is KKR’s greatest finisher and biggest match-winner in the IPL.
Harshal has never dismissed Rinku in the IPL, which means Harshal should try something new, as the usual slower balls will not bother the KKR vice-captain. If Rinku fails to surprise Harshal in the death overs, any of his loose balls may cost him dearly.
KKR vs SRH Match No. 6 Key Players:
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Liam Livingstone, Jaydev Unadkat
Kolkata Knight Riders: Finn Allen, Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Blessing Muzarabani, Varun Chakraborty
Free Live Streaming, Live Telecast in India
TV rights in India: The KKR vs SRH match will be telecast live on TV in India on Star Sports Network.
Live Streaming Platforms in India: Fans can watch the match on JioHotstar app and website on mobile, laptop and other streaming devices.
When will the match happen?
The sixth match of IPL 2026 will be played on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
Where will the match be played?
This match will be played at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
KKR vs SRH Match No. 6 IPL 2026, Weather Report, Pitch Report of Eden Gardens, Kolkata
KKR vs SRH: Weather report in Kolkata
The weather will be good for the IPL 2026 match between KKR and SRH on April 2. The evening is expected to be clear and warm with almost no chance of rain, so the full match is likely to be played. The temperature is expected to hover around 28-30 degrees Celsius in the evening and drop to 25-26 degrees Celsius later at night.
However, humidity will be quite high, meaning heavy dew may form during the second innings. This can cause the ball to become wet and slippery, causing problems for the bowlers and giving an advantage to the batsmen. Overall, fans can expect hot, dry and action-packed conditions under the lights.
KKR vs SRH: Eden Gardens pitch report
Eden Gardens is expected to provide a balanced and exciting pitch for KKR’s first home match. The surface will help the fast bowlers at the start of the match with good bounce and movement. As the game progresses, the pitch slows down and the spinners start getting help, especially in the second innings when the ball becomes grippier and turns more.
Despite conditions becoming difficult later on, batsmen can still score runs. Fast bowlers have taken approximately 60.08% of the wickets at Eden Gardens, while spinners have taken 39.92% of the wickets. Dew in the evening can create problems for the bowler and this is why teams in Kolkata often prefer to chase the target after winning the toss.
At this venue, the average score in the first innings is 159, while the average in the second innings falls to 140. In recent matches, teams batting first have won 9 games (45%), while teams chasing have won 11 matches (55%), which means bowling first will be a conscious decision.
KKR vs SRH Head-to-Head Record: Key Stats
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad has been a one-sided rivalry in the IPL. Out of the 30 IPL matches played between them so far, KKR has completely dominated SRH and won 20 games, while the remaining 10 games have been won by the Hyderabad team.
KKR vs SRH head-to-head record: last five matches
Knight Riders have dominated Hyderabad in their last five matches in the tournament. KKR have won four out of the last five matches, while SRH have managed only one win.
KKR vs SRH Head-to-Head Record – Results of last five matches:
- SRH won by 110 runs in Delhi on May 25, 2025
- KKR won by 80 runs in Kolkata on April 3, 2025
- KKR won by 8 wickets in Ahmedabad on 21 May 2024
- KKR won by 8 wickets in Chennai on 26 May 2024
- KKR won by 4 runs in Kolkata on 23 March 2024
KKR vs SRH – Conclusion:
This IPL 2026 encounter will be a real tactical battle between the three-time champions and the well-balanced Hyderabad franchise. KKR will rely on their spin attack to control the game, while SRH will rely on their power hitters to deal with the pressure.
With both teams loaded with match-winners, this clash at the iconic Eden Gardens promises big moments and high drama, and SRH should be hungry to change their narrative against KKR. Hyderabad had failed to make the playoffs last season, but now they have a strong group to turn the tables.
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