Sunrisers Hyderabad has the pedigree of Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head at the top of the order.

For Rajasthan Royals, the task of offering explosive starts with the willow falls on the pair of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal. How these dynamic left-handed openers fare in tandem may go a long way towards deciding the outcome of the IPL 2026 Eliminator at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium in New Chandigarh on Wednesday (May 27, 2026).

“Both opening pairs are destructive in their own ways. We’ve obviously seen for a few years now the dynamic partnership that we have with Travis and Abhishek,” said SRH assistant coach James Franklin in the lead-up to the clash against Royals.

“And then there’s been the emergence of Sooryavanshi and Jaiswal for RR from the back end of last year’s IPL. As an opening partnership, they have been equally destructive. So I dare say both bowling line-ups have got their work cut out for them, but that makes the game exciting for everyone involved.”

Among these belligerent batters, Head has been a tad subdued by his usual standards. According to Franklin, however, there is no cause for concern.

“More than individual form or scores, we look at the partnership. We look at the way that he and Abhishek put pressure back on opposition bowlers,” the New Zealander explained.

“So tomorrow [Wednesday] is another opportunity for Travis and Abhishek to go and stamp their mark on the game. There is no doubt about Travis’ ability to play a match-winning role for us”.

Nitish Kumar has embraced greater prominence with the ball for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026. Having bowled just 23.1 overs in the previous three editions of the tournament, he has already delivered 13 overs in six games in 2026.

The 26-year-old has made breakthroughs with the new ball, and also chipped in during the death overs. He has done all of this at quicker speeds, having worked with pace-bowling coach Steffan Jones prior to the season on consistently hitting the 140kph mark.