MI vs SRH, IPL 2026: Rickelton century goes in vain as Head, Klaasen blow away Mumbai Indians

Ryan Rickelton (123 n.o., 55b, 10×4, 8×6) produced his maiden IPL century as Mumbai Indians piled up 243 for five against Sunrisers Hyderabad, its highest total so far this IPL season, but it still wasn’t enough at the Wankhede Stadium here on Wednesday.

In conditions tailor-made for batting, Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head (76, 30b, 4×4, 8×6) fired in tandem for the first time this campaign, setting up a chase during which the scoring rate barely dipped below two runs a ball. Heinrich Klaasen (65 n.o., 30b, 7×4, 4×6) ensured there were no late jitters, sealing a commanding win.

The result left MI – with its sixth loss in eight games – on the brink of being the first team to be ousted from the playoff race, while SRH continued its surge with its fifth consecutive win.

The mammoth chase was a statement. Head shrugged off a quiet tournament to go on the offensive, while Abhishek extended his prolific run. Their 92-run PowerPlay effort during a 129-run stand all but sealed the contest. The Mumbai outfit’s missed opportunities — a dropped catch by Naman Dhir and an unappealed edge off Trent Boult in the third over — only compounded their woes.

Though spinner A.M. Ghazanfar struck off successive deliveries in the ninth over, removing Abhishek and Ishan Kishan, Klaasen’s controlled aggression made sure SRH cruised home with eight balls to spare.

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Earlier, Rickelton, drafted in for the injured Quinton de Kock, made an immediate impact. He raced to a 23-ball fifty and later brought up his century off 44 deliveries — the third by a MI batter this season. Alongside Will Jacks, he powered the host to 78 without loss in the PowerPlay, the pair adding 93 for the opening wicket.

While Nitish Kumar dismissed Jacks with his first delivery and Suryakumar Yadav fell cheaply to a short ball from Eshan Malinga, Rickelton maintained the tempo. A brisk 55-run partnership with Naman kept the runs flowing, and the southpaw’s knock was marked by clean hitting, the standout being a straight drive off Pat Cummins.

Hardik Pandya’s burst of 31 off 15 balls meant MI crossed the 200-run mark for the third time this season.

SRH’s inexperienced pace duo of Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain, along with left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, were taken apart. However, the last four overs saw Sunrisers conceding only 41 runs to pull things back a little. The late fightback proved invaluable as SRH produced the highest successful IPL chase against MI.

Published on Apr 29, 2026