SRH vs RR Eliminator preview: Hyderabad and Rajasthan clash in race to final; check head-to-head, pitch report, more

The Sunrisers Hyderabad will take on the Rajasthan Royals at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA Stadium in Mohali tonight.

The winner of the IPL 2026 Eliminator will face the Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 on 29 May.

The match will be broadcast on Star Sports and streamed on JioHotstar. Mohali has a capacity of around 38,000 fans. It is also known as the New Punjab Cricket Association Stadium.

SRH's highest team total in this fixture is 286. Their lowest score stands at 127. RR has posted a high score of 242 and a low of 102.

SRH have completely dominated recent encounters, winning their last 6 consecutive matches against RR. That streak dates back to the 2023 season. In IPL 2026, SRH swept both league fixtures. They won by 57 runs in Hyderabad and chased down 229 to win by 5 wickets in Jaipur.

In knockout history, both sides have 1 playoff win each. RR won the 2013 Eliminator by 4 wickets. SRH beat RR in the 2024 Qualifier 2.

SRH's highest individual score in this fixture is Ishan Kishan's unbeaten 106. Jos Buttler (now GT) scored 124, which remains RR's best. James Faulkner's 5/16 is RR's best bowling performance in this rivalry.

Fast bowler Harshal Patel is expected to return to bolster the death-bowling attack. SRH's explosive top order of Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen remains lethal.

Rajasthan Royals, by contrast, are managing two injury concerns ahead of this game. Captain Riyan Parag is carrying a hamstring issue. Veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is also nursing a minor injury.

However, the team management expects both players to pass their late fitness tests. Dasun Shanaka earlier joined the RR squad as a replacement for the injured Sam Curran.

RR will lean heavily on their explosive opening pair for a strong start. Yashasvi Jaiswal and 15-year-old centurion Vaibhav Sooryavanshi are expected to set the tone at the top.

RR: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma (Impact Player).

Heinrich Klaasen (SRH): This destructive middle-order force is renowned for his dominance against spin. Klaasen has scored over 400 runs at a strike rate above 170 in each of his three SRH seasons.

Pat Cummins (SRH): Australia's premier fast bowler is a proven leader. Cummins captained SRH to a runners-up finish in IPL 2024 after being bought for ₹20.50 crore.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (RR): He is a destructive left-handed opener who scored 397 runs at a strike rate of 159.44 this year. He has had many explosive starts, but he now needs to play a bigger innings.

Jofra Archer (RR): He is RR's most potent pace weapon. Archer's express speed and ability to bowl incisive spells at any stage make him pivotal in a knockout scenario.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (RR): The 15-year-old's fearless stroke play at the top of the order can shift match momentum instantly. He is probably the most exciting player to watch tonight.

Significant dew is expected to settle during the second innings. This will make the ball slippery for both fielders and bowlers. Spinners will find it particularly tough to grip the ball under the lights.

Pitch No. 4 will be used for this game. It is hard and flat, offering true bounce. The average first-innings score at Mullanpur this season is 214. Six out of the last 8 completed innings here crossed 200. Fast bowlers can extract early carry and seam movement with the new ball.

The toss winner is highly likely to bowl first. Any team batting first must target well above 215 to 220 runs.

The winner of this match will have to defeat Gujarat to face the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the final. So, one of these teams needs to win 3 consecutive matches to lift the trophy. But first, they need a victory tonight.