Sunrisers Hyderabad rope in South Africa star as injury replacement ahead of CSK clash in IPL 2026

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has been hit by last-minute injury replacements during their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 campaign. Earlier in the event, they replaced their England pacer, Brydon Carse, who couldn’t take part in any of the contests due to the finger injury he picked up in the practice session. 

SRH, under the leadership of standing captain Ishan Kishan, is currently in fifth position of the points table, having earned a victory against the Rajasthan Royals by 57 runs after losing two successive defeats against the Lucknow Super Giants and the Punjab Kings.

SRH make last-minute squad change before crucial encounter

Hyderabad has signed the South African fast-bowling all-rounder, Gerald Coetzee, as the injury replacement of David Payne for the remainder of the IPL 2026, as the right-arm pacer joined the 2016 champions for INR 2 crore. 

Payne, the 35-year-old left-arm seamer, conceded 70 runs in five overs across the two clashes before being ruled out of the competition. He had come into the squad as the replacement for Australia’s Jack Edwards, who withdrew before the start of the tournament due to a foot injury.

Coetzee, who featured in South Africa’s five-match T20I series in New Zealand in March and played a starring role in their win during the fourth game with 3/31, played in the IPL in the past.

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He was part of the Mumbai Indians (MI) setup in 2024 when he picked up 13 wickets in ten encounters, while collecting two wickets in four clashes for the Gujarat Titans in 2025.

Who is the South African player signed as replacement

Coetzee will be a strong replacement for Payne, having gained experience from the competition. SRH signed the left-arm seamer from Sri Lanka, Dilshan Madushanka, as a replacement for Carse.

The good news for the Sunrisers is that Pat Cummins has been cleared to play the rest of the event after he underwent scans on his back in Sydney and returned to India on April 19. Cummins hasn’t played so far this season and aims for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) clash for his comeback in Jaipur on April 25.

Big boost for Sunrisers Hyderabad ahead of CSK showdown

Sunrisers will play the encounter against the Super Kings on April 18 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. The home side bundled out the Royals for 159 runs in 19 overs as the two debutant pacers shared four wickets each.

Praful Hinge picked up three wickets in his very first over of the innings before finishing with 4/34, while Sakib Hussain ended with a strong bowling performance of 4/24. They may go with the same eleven against the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side on Saturday.