Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) won the toss and elected to bat first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their last league match of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium on may 22. While SRH didn't tinker with their playing XI, Rajat Patidar returned for RCB in place of Jacob Bethell. Notably, both the teams have already qualified for the playoffs with RCB sitting on top of the points table with 18 points. SRH will look to seal the deal and ensure their top two finish in the standings.
What did the captains say at the toss?
SRH captain Pat Cummins, after winning the toss, said:
"We'll bat first. I think it's a long shot getting in the top two, but we'll give it a good crack tonight. We've been pretty clear that the boys are going to enjoy it tonight. We're going to test out how good you are, maybe try a few new things ahead of the finals. But just, again, bat first, try and score as big as we can see if we can defend. (On this season) Yeah, it's been really pleasing to get the qualification before this last game. The guys have been really consistent all year. So, yeah, this one, probably the last one before we start getting really serious. (On the supporters) They've been amazing here at Uppal. All the streets have been lined, the hotel's been busy the last few days. Yeah, we've had pretty won every night game here as well this season. So, hopefully finish off on a good note. Same combination as the last game."
Meanwhile, RCB skipper Rajat Patidar, after losing the toss, said:
Rajat Patidar: I feel, wherever we go, it's a home game for us. (What do you want to take out of this game?) According to me, I think it doesn't matter where you are standing in the points table. Whether you are on the top or the bottom, you have to play and you have to match the standards in every game. (On ticking a lot of boxes this season) Yeah, that's what I think. That's important when you play a competitive game like IPL, very difficult. It's important if you win, if you are targeting a final match to win the championship, you have to tick all the boxes. (On not having too many injuries) Yeah, definitely. This time we are not facing any kind of injury. There's one change. Bethell got injured. He got an injury in his finger and I'm coming in place of Bethell.
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Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI):
Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Venkatesh Iyer, Jitesh Sharma(w), Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Impact subs: Tim David, Kanishk Chouhan, Swapnil Singh, Abhinandan Singh, Jordan Cox
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI):
Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan(w), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora, Smaran Ravichandran, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Pat Cummins(c), Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain
Sunrisers Hyderabad Impact subs: Praful Hinge, Aniket Verma, Liam Livingstone, Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel