Summary of this article
CSK won toss, opted to bowl against SRH
Abhishek Sharma smashed 15-ball fifty
Southpaw dismissed for 22-ball 59
Abhishek Sharma sped to the fastest ever fifty scored by a SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) batter during their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Saturday (April 18).
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Abhishek blasted a 15-ball fifty, studded with four sixes and five fours. The India southpaw made the most of evidently batting-friendly conditions in Uppal to put the SunRisers in a strong position in the powerplay. He eventually perished for a 22-ball 59, dismissed by a Jamie Overton beauty in the eighth over.
The previous joint fastest half-century by an SRH batter was by Abhishek himself, a 16-ball effort against Mumbai Indians at the same venue in IPL 2024. His opening partner Travis Head also two 16-ball fifties to his name, against Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants in 2024.
Earlier, the Super Kings won the toss and elected to bowl first against SunRisers. MS Dhoni once again was missing from CSK's playing XI as he recovers from his calf strain, while Dilshan Madushanka came in place of Harsh Dubey, to give SRH "more swinging options".
SRH Vs CSK, IPL 2026: Playing XIs
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (c), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora (wk), Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivang Kumar, Praful Hinge, Sakib Hussain, Eshan Malinga
Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Matthew Short, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh
