A hat-trick of wins for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2026 as they defeated Delhi Capitals (DC) by 47 runs in Hyderabad on April 21. After posting a massive total, thanks to Abhishek Sharma’s thunderous unbeaten century, the pace duo of Eshan Malinga and Sakib Hussain restricted the visitors to under the 200-run mark.
Abhishek Sharma’s blazing century; sixes galore in Hyderabad
SRH posted a huge 242/2, courtesy of star opener Abhishek Sharma’s unbeaten 135 off 68 balls, striking at 198.52. It was Abhishek’s second IPL ton – after reaching his fifty in 25 balls, he raced to his century in the next 22. A quickfire 97-run opening stand between Travis Head and Abhishek set the tone, while the 79-run partnership for the second wicket between Abhishek and skipper Ishan Kishan, in just 5.5 overs, maintained the momentum. A blistering unbeaten cameo from the in-form Heinrich Klaasen – 37* off 13 at a strike rate of 284.61 – provided the finishing touch. A total of 16 sixes were hit in the innings, with Abhishek alone smashing 10 of them.
Abhishek equals Kohli’s record; tops Orange Cap leaderboard
It was a record-breaking night for Abhishek as his blistering ton marked his ninth T20 century, equalling Virat Kohli’s record. Both now share the record for the most hundreds by an Indian in T20 cricket. With this knock, the SRH opener also moved to the top of the Orange Cap leaderboard, having scored 323 runs in seven innings at an average of 53.83 and a strike-rate of 215.33, including two fifties and one century.
DC batters fail to keep momentum
Pathum Nissanka failed again, dismissed for just eight. Nitish Rana, who had a tough outing with the ball – conceding 55 in four overs without a wicket – showed some intent with the bat, thumping 57 off 30. He stitched an 86-run stand for the second wicket with KL Rahul (37 off 23), giving DC brief hope. However, after that, they lost three wickets in quick succession, and SRH broke the backbone of the chase. Sameer Rizvi (41 off 28) and Tristan Stubbs (27 off 16) added some runs, but it was not enough as DC finished at 195/9 in 20 overs.
Malinga–Sakib pace duo shine
On a wicket where an aggregate of 437 runs was scored across two innings, the SRH pace duo of Eshan Malinga and Sakib Hussain stood out. Together, they picked up five wickets for 61 runs in eight overs – Malinga (4/32, economy 8.00) and Sakib (1/29, economy 7.25). After this match, Malinga has taken nine wickets in his last three innings, while Sakib has impressed with his slower balls and effective variations. Meanwhile, Harsh Dubey also picked up three wickets, all coming in the final over of the game.
Brief scores: SRH 242/2 (Abhishek Sharma 135*, Heinrich Klaasen 37*; Axar Patel 1/23) beat DC 195/9 (Nitish Rana 57, Sameer Rizvi 41; Eshan Malinga 4/32) by 47 runs.
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