IPL 2026: Major setback for SRH as Pat Cummins returns home ahead of LSG clash

Ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the captain of the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Pat Cummins, was found to be injured and missed their first couple of games of the competition against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

That pushed the Orange Army to go with Ishan Kishan being appointed as the new leader for the franchise, while their left-handed opening batter, Abhishek Sharma, was revealed as the vice-captain of the competition.

Why Pat Cummins has left SRH camp mid-season

Pat Cummins, their designated captain of the SRH side who has been out of action since July last year with only one Ashes 2025/26 appearance in between, has left the camp at IPL 2026 and returned home to have a final scan on his injured back. The reports have understood that the scan is scheduled to be conducted with CA, and that Cummins left India after their KKR game.

The pacer is expected to rejoin the squad on April 17 if cleared by CA. This is along with the expected lines, since Cummins had revealed that he would play till the final if his fitness gets the green signal. He had been bowling in the training sessions before their opener in Bengaluru.

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“I'm still recovering from a back injury, but it's good. I'm back bowling in the nets. The IPL is starting soon. I won't make the start of that, but it shouldn't be too long before I'm back out there playing. I'm back bowling. I'm bowling basically every third day at the moment. We've mapped out a plan to get me right by [the] middle of the tournament.” Cummins told the Business of Sports Broadcast before leaving home.

How SRH could adjust without Cummins vs LSG

That absence of Cummins for the Hyderabad side has been a massive blank in their pace bowling department. Their England pacer, Brydon Carse, is already injured and hasn’t played the first couple of clashes of the season, while they tried to go with David Payne. But the left-arm pacer has flown around the park.

Sri Lanka’s Eshan Malinga, however, was decent in the KKR clash and is expected to retain his position for their third encounter against the Lucknow Super Giants at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad in the afternoon.

Hyderabad is currently sixth in the points table with one victory in two clashes at a net run rate of +0.469.