Good news for SRH; THIS star player granted NOC to play in IPL 2026 - Reports
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SRH will play the IPL 2026 opener against RCB on March 28.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will clash with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the opening game of the Indian Premier League 2026. The encounter will take place on March 28 at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Ahead of IPL 2026, SRH have suffered a major blow as their captain Pat Cummins will not be available for the first few games. Due to a back injury, Cummins will miss the start of the tournament. He is currently in rehabilitation and will take the reins of the side once he regains his fitness.
Hence, wicket-keeper batsman Ishan Kishan has been nominated as the interim captain at the start. Abhishek Sharma has been named as the vice-captain.
Cummins is a crucial pacer for the side and his absence will affect their pace attack. However, Sunrisers have a piece of good news as one of their foreign pacers has received permission to play in the tournament.
Eshan Malinga receives NOC to play in IPL 2026
According to a report by Cricwire, Sri Lankan pacer Eshan Malinga has received a No Objection Certificate (NOC) by Sri Lanka Cricket ( SLC) to participate in IPL 2026.
The right-arm pacer was retained by SRH for the 2026 edition at his price of INR 1.20 crore. He made his debut in the last season and gave an impressive performance, clinching 13 wickets in seven games at an economy of 8.93 and an average of 18.31.
Earlier, Pathum Nissanka, Kamindu Mendis, Dushmantha Cahmeera, and Dunith Wellalage were granted permission by SLC to play their respective teams. However, players like Matheesha Pathirana, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Nuwan Thushara are still awaiting the SLC’s nod to play in the tournament.
The Governing Body has stated that only players who will successfully pass the fitness tests will be permitted to play in franchise T20 leagues.
Meanwhile, Brydon Carse, Jaydev Unadkat, Harshal Patel, and Shivam Mavi are a few prominent pacers in the SRH squad. They have a strong batting unit with the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, and Liam Livingstone.
Eshan Malinga will play for which team in IPL 2026?
Eshan Malinga will play for SRH in IPL 2026.
Who will captain Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026?
Ishan Kishan will lead the team in IPL 2026 at the start in Pat Cummins’ absence.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.