Sunrisers Hyderabad gets new captain before IPL 2026, Ishan Kishan gets command in place of Pat Cummins.

IPL 2026: Just before the start of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has seen a major change in captaincy. Australian fast bowler Pat Cummins has not fully recovered from the back injury, hence the command of the team has been handed over to Ishan Kishan in the initial matches.

Cummins will take back the captaincy

SRH officially confirmed this on social media. The team made it clear that this captaincy is only temporary. When Pat Cummins is fully fit, he will become the captain again. Ishan Kishan’s vice-captain will be Abhishek Sharma. Both players were recently part of India’s T20 World Cup 2026 winning team and have scored half-centuries in the final.

𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 🚨

Pat Cummins will miss a few games while recovering from injury.

Until he recovers, Ishan Kishan will be the Captain and Abhishek Sharma will be the Vice-Captain. pic.twitter.com/etXJUkQJeG

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) March 18, 2026

Cummins will not be able to play the initial match

Pat Cummins is scheduled to report to the SRH camp on 23 March. There he will work on rehabilitation and fitness. It is not yet clear how many matches he will miss, but according to reports, he will not be able to play the first three matches of the season.

SRH’s IPL 2026 schedule

Sunrisers Hyderabad will play their first match against defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on March 28 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The second match will be played against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 2. The next and third match will be played on 5th April against Lucknow Super Giants at their home ground.

SRH’s journey under the captaincy of Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins has captained SRH in 30 matches so far. This includes 15 wins, 14 losses and 1 no result match. In the year 2024, under his leadership, the team reached the finals, but lost to Kolkata Knight Riders. SRH finished sixth in the points table in the 2025 season. Cummins’s bowling and leadership were always appreciated, but this time injury kept him out of the starting lineup.

Why did only Ishan Kishan become the captain?

Ishan Kishan has experience of 119 matches in IPL, while Abhishek Sharma has played 77 matches. Ishaan has captained Jharkhand in domestic cricket and has also won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. His half-century in the final of T20 World Cup 2026 was memorable. SRH management has considered him the most suitable option.