IPL 2026: SRH skipper Pat Cummins confirms availability ahead of Rajasthan Royals match: ‘Been a long time coming’

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have received a big boost ahead of their IPL 2026 match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Saturday, with skipper Pat Cummins confirming his availability for the clash.

“Been a long time coming, stinging to get back into it tomorrow,” Pat Cummins shared on Instagram, along with a series of photos from a training session.

“These AI pictures are getting better and better," replied Cummins' Australia and SRH teammate Travis Head.

Cummins had missed the first half of IPL 2026 due to a back injury, and Ishan Kishan led SRH in the Australia pacer's absence.

Late last year, he only played one Test of the Ashes series at home and also missed Australia's horrific T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, where they were knocked out in the group stage.

Pat Cummins had joined the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad on 27 March, but flew back home after their second match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) that was held on 2 April, in order to undergo his last scans. Last week, he cleared the fitness test and was scheduled to rejoin the squad within the next one week.

They began their campaign with a loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), but bounced back with a victory against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in their second match. Overall, it has been a mixed outing for the 2016 champions in IPL 2026 so far.

Pat Cummins’ availability comes at the right time for Sunrisers Hyderabad, when they are in the midst of a battle for a spot in the IPL 2026 playoffs.

As a captain, Pat Cummins led Sunrisers Hyderabad to the final of IPL 2024, where they lost to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by eight wickets.

Overall, the 32-year-old has played 72 matches and has taken 79 wickets at an average of 28.12 and an economy rate of 9.06. Apart from SRH, he has played for Delhi Daredevils (Now Delhi Capitals) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as well.