Sunrisers batting might comes to the fore in big chase as Mumbai Indians continue to slide

Ryan Rickelton's hundred in vain as Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Heinrich Klaasen make the tough job look easy

Synopsis: Travishek’s 129-run stand and Heinrich Klaasen’s unbeaten 65 powers SRH to 6-wicket win over MI.

Exactly a month ago, the Mumbai Indians won their first IPL 2026 match at home – a six-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders. The great start raised early hopes about another tilt at the title.

One month later, the five-time champions slumped to their sixth loss of the season, losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad and further worsening their Playoff qualification chances.

IPL 2026 had so far seen only one-half of the Abhishek Sharma-Travis Head combination succeed, with the Indian making all the running. But on Wednesday, against an MI attack in desperate need of a change in fortunes, it was Head’s time to shine under the bright lights and lay the ideal foundation for the 244-run chase.

The Australians’ innings was one of brute force, but not chanceless as Naman Dhir dropped him on 2 off Trent Boult in the third over, and to make matters worse, the ball went for a six. He made the hosts pay for the drop, striking the Kiwi left-armer for two more sixes in the same over.

It was just the start the southpaw had been looking for, and he would dominate the 129-run opening stand in 52 balls. The innings was a trademark Head performance, with a large percentage of the runs coming on the offside. The left-hander made the most of some insipid bowling, creaming the ball through the cover and point region on multiple occasions.

He was equally dismissive when the MI bowlers tried to change their line, scoring 16 runs towards mid-wicket to keep the opposition on their toes.

His half-century came in a mere 20 balls with a maximum off Ashwani Kumar in the seventh over. It was a sensational knock under the dual pressure of lack of runs from his own bat and the stress of chasing 244 runs.

The carnage continued for 10 more balls, of which Head made 26 more runs before Hardik Pandya had the better of him. The requirement, by then, had come down to 111 runs with just over 10 overs in hand.

Wicketkeepers often score big at the Wankhede Stadium. After Quinton de Kock and Sanju Samson notched up hundreds in the last two games, it was Ryan Rickelton’s turn to reach three figures, making an unbeaten 123 off 55 balls.

Handing Danish Malewar opportunities at the top had not paid off as the five-time champions would have desired. With De Kock out injured, the onus fell on Rickelton to deliver on Wednesday.

The South African’s innings was defined by his onside play. Seven out of his eight sixes came between mid-wicket and square leg. It helped his cause that one side was relatively shorter than the other, but it was the kind of knock MI needed to give the others a platform to build on.

His fifty came off 23 balls with a trademark flick for six off Nitish Reddy, and with many of the middle-order batsmen searching for form, it was imperative he carried on.

The South African maintained his high scoring rate after reaching the landmark, continuing to hit sixes on the legside. His second fifty came in 21 balls, and he reached his maiden IPL hundred from his 44th ball in the 15th over.

Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were the talk of the town after their spells against the Rajasthan Royals in Hyderabad earlier this month. But since then, the sting in their bowling hasn’t been the same. Hinge, who took 4/34 that day, had gone for 49 and 60 runs before Wednesday’s match.

Hussain, who took 4/24 against RR, returned more economical figures in the next two matches before conceding 62 against RR on Saturday. Wednesday presented both players with a chance to produce another defining performance.
Yet, neither could rise to the occasion. Hinge shared the new ball with skipper Pat Cummins and went for 15 in his first over, before he was taken off, ending with 2/54 from his four overs to extend his lean run.

Hussain went for 18 runs in his first over and proved ineffective in his other spells as well, failing to finish his quota and ended with 1/39 in his three overs.

After a dream start, they are now facing the other side of the coin, and SRH will hope they can bounce back sooner rather than later.

Brief Scores: MI 243/5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out) lost to SRH 249/4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out) by six wickets.

Based in Mumbai, Shankar Narayan has over five years of experience and his reporting has ranged from the Ranji Trophy to ICC World Cups, and he writes extensively on women’s cricket. ... Read More

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Synopsis: Travishek’s 129-run stand and Heinrich Klaasen’s unbeaten 65 powers SRH to 6-wicket win over MI.

Exactly a month ago, the Mumbai Indians won their first IPL 2026 match at home – a six-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders. The great start raised early hopes about another tilt at the title.

One month later, the five-time champions slumped to their sixth loss of the season, losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad and further worsening their Playoff qualification chances.

IPL 2026 had so far seen only one-half of the Abhishek Sharma-Travis Head combination succeed, with the Indian making all the running. But on Wednesday, against an MI attack in desperate need of a change in fortunes, it was Head’s time to shine under the bright lights and lay the ideal foundation for the 244-run chase.

The Australians’ innings was one of brute force, but not chanceless as Naman Dhir dropped him on 2 off Trent Boult in the third over, and to make matters worse, the ball went for a six. He made the hosts pay for the drop, striking the Kiwi left-armer for two more sixes in the same over.

It was just the start the southpaw had been looking for, and he would dominate the 129-run opening stand in 52 balls. The innings was a trademark Head performance, with a large percentage of the runs coming on the offside. The left-hander made the most of some insipid bowling, creaming the ball through the cover and point region on multiple occasions.

He was equally dismissive when the MI bowlers tried to change their line, scoring 16 runs towards mid-wicket to keep the opposition on their toes.

His half-century came in a mere 20 balls with a maximum off Ashwani Kumar in the seventh over. It was a sensational knock under the dual pressure of lack of runs from his own bat and the stress of chasing 244 runs.

The carnage continued for 10 more balls, of which Head made 26 more runs before Hardik Pandya had the better of him. The requirement, by then, had come down to 111 runs with just over 10 overs in hand.

Wicketkeepers often score big at the Wankhede Stadium. After Quinton de Kock and Sanju Samson notched up hundreds in the last two games, it was Ryan Rickelton’s turn to reach three figures, making an unbeaten 123 off 55 balls.

Handing Danish Malewar opportunities at the top had not paid off as the five-time champions would have desired. With De Kock out injured, the onus fell on Rickelton to deliver on Wednesday.

The South African’s innings was defined by his onside play. Seven out of his eight sixes came between mid-wicket and square leg. It helped his cause that one side was relatively shorter than the other, but it was the kind of knock MI needed to give the others a platform to build on.

His fifty came off 23 balls with a trademark flick for six off Nitish Reddy, and with many of the middle-order batsmen searching for form, it was imperative he carried on.

The South African maintained his high scoring rate after reaching the landmark, continuing to hit sixes on the legside. His second fifty came in 21 balls, and he reached his maiden IPL hundred from his 44th ball in the 15th over.

Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were the talk of the town after their spells against the Rajasthan Royals in Hyderabad earlier this month. But since then, the sting in their bowling hasn’t been the same. Hinge, who took 4/34 that day, had gone for 49 and 60 runs before Wednesday’s match.

Hussain, who took 4/24 against RR, returned more economical figures in the next two matches before conceding 62 against RR on Saturday. Wednesday presented both players with a chance to produce another defining performance.
Yet, neither could rise to the occasion. Hinge shared the new ball with skipper Pat Cummins and went for 15 in his first over, before he was taken off, ending with 2/54 from his four overs to extend his lean run.

Hussain went for 18 runs in his first over and proved ineffective in his other spells as well, failing to finish his quota and ended with 1/39 in his three overs.

After a dream start, they are now facing the other side of the coin, and SRH will hope they can bounce back sooner rather than later.

Brief Scores: MI 243/5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out) lost to SRH 249/4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out) by six wickets.