Sunrisers Hyderabad hand their T20 World Cup hero the armband as Pat Cummins watches from the sidelines. Can Kishan rise to the occasion?
For Ishan Kishan, the call came at the perfect time. Fresh off a stunning T20 World Cup campaign, the 27-year-old wicketkeeper-batter has been handed his first ever IPL captaincy — and his first assignment couldn’t be trickier: facing the defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the season opener on March 28.
Sunrisers Hyderabad officially confirmed on Wednesday, March 18, that Kishan will lead the side in Pat Cummins’ absence, with fellow India southpaw Abhishek Sharma named as his deputy.
What Happened to Cummins?
Cummins has not played competitive cricket since the third Ashes Test in Adelaide in December 2025, having been sidelined since July 2025 with a lumbar bone stress injury in his lower back. He was subsequently ruled out of the remaining Ashes matches and the 2026 T20 World Cup due to the same issue.
Sources have confirmed that Cummins is expected to join the SRH camp in Hyderabad around March 23, but he will need more time before he’s ready to play. There is no clear date marked for his return, though the assumption within the franchise is that he is likely to miss at least the first few matches.
SRH’s campaign gets underway against RCB on March 28, then moves to a clash against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 2, before their first home game against Lucknow Super Giants on April 5. Cummins could potentially miss all three.
Why Kishan? The Logic Behind the Decision
The decision to back Kishan was driven by head coach Daniel Vettori and the SRH management, who felt it was a tactical choice built on solid reasoning.
Kishan has been in exceptional form since leading Jharkhand to their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title in December 2025, finishing as the top scorer in the tournament with 517 runs. His performances then earned him a place in India’s T20 World Cup squad, where he scored 317 runs and finished as the team’s second-highest run-scorer.
This will be Kishan’s first stint as a captain in the IPL — a significant moment for a player who has had to battle hard to establish himself at the highest level. The management also felt that as a wicketkeeper, Kishan is ideally placed to read the game and guide the bowlers with smart field placements.
Kishan joined SRH for ₹11.25 crore ahead of IPL 2025, and made an immediate impact — smashing a blazing 106* off just 47 balls on debut against Rajasthan Royals. He ended that season with 354 runs at a strike rate of 152.58.
Abhishek Sharma: The Perfect Deputy
Abhishek Sharma joined SRH ahead of IPL 2019 and has grown into one of the most explosive openers in the league, forming a ferocious partnership at the top with Travis Head. He smashed a half-century off just 18 balls in India’s T20 World Cup final win — a knock that announced him on the biggest stage.
Together, Kishan and Abhishek give SRH one of the most dynamic leadership pairings in this year’s tournament — young, fearless and on the back of one of the best World Cup campaigns of their careers.
The Bigger Picture for SRH
Under Cummins’ captaincy, Sunrisers had a genuine revival — winning 15 of 30 matches and taking the franchise all the way to the final in 2024. Last season, however, SRH slipped to sixth place, managing just six wins in 14 games. The pressure is on to bounce back.
Notably, SRH previously found themselves in a similar situation back in 2019, when Bhuvneshwar Kumar stood in for Kane Williamson in the first match of the season — a reminder that the franchise has navigated captain absences before.
This time, though, the stakes feel higher. With a tough early schedule and no Cummins to anchor the bowling attack, Kishan will need to lead from the front — not just with the bat, but with every decision he makes in the field.
IPL 2026 hasn’t even started yet, and Sunrisers Hyderabad are already writing a compelling storyline.
