IPL 2026: Swashbuckling wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan has been assigned captaincy for Sunrisers Hyderabad, in an announcement by the franchise on Wednesday (March 18).
Notably, opening batter Abhishek Sharma has been named as Ishan's deputy. It is worth noting that regular captain Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the first few games due to injury.
Interestingly, there were reports that suggested that Cummins might miss a few games due to his recurring injury. An announcement by Sunrisers Hyderabad on their official website confirmed the development. It is also worth noting that Cummins sustained a back injury before the Ashes 2025-26, as he appeared in just one test out of five for Australia.
The Australian team management also ruled him out of the T20 World Cup 2026, with the side failing to go past the group stage, with defeats against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.
'Pat Cummins will miss a few games while recovering from injury. Until he recovers, Ishan Kishan will be the Captain and Abhishek Sharma will be the Vice-Captain,' SRH announced in the X post.
'Exceptional' Ishan Kishan
The wicketkeeper from Jharkhand has been in imperious form, starting with his impressive outing in the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title in 2025, as he finished as the leading scorer in the tournament with 517 runs. His performances ensured a return to India's T20 World Cup squad, where he played a crucial role in India's T20 WC title defence.
At the 2026 T20 WC, Ishan Kishan scored 317 runs and ended as the team's second-highest run-scorer.
SRH signed Ishan Kishan before the IPL 2025 season for Rs 14.5 crore and made an immediate impact, smashing a 45-ball century against Rajasthan Royals on debut. However, he ended the season with 354 runs from 13 innings at an average of 35.40.
SRH squad for IPL 2026 season:
Salil Arora, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Ravichandran Smaran, Aniket Verma, Abhishek Sharma, Brydon Carse, Harsh Dubey, Jack Edwards, Liam Livingstone, Kamindu Mendis, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Mavi, Pat Cummins, Amit Kumar, Krains Fuletra, Praful Hinge, Eshan Malinga, Harshal Patel, Sakib Hussain, Shivang Kumar, Onkar Tarmale, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansario Read: