In the second IPL 2025 match, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will host Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday, March 23.
The 18th season of the 10-team tournament began with a lopsided match between the reigning champion Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The runners-up from the previous year, Hyderabad, will now face the first-ever winners, Rajasthan Royals, at home. For the first time in his career, Riyan Parag will be leading the Royals. They will be led once more by Pat Cummins, who inspired everyone with his leadership of the Orange Army throughout the previous season.
Toss Update
Parag won the toss for the Royals and opted to bowl first. He reckoned that the wicket was a bit dry. He explained how special it is for him to lead the side from where he started his IPL career at the age of 17. Meanwhile, Cummins felt that the toss would not play a huge role, and he does not mind batting first in the hot and humid conditions in Hyderabad.
Sanju Samson as Impact Player
Sanju Samson will be playing as an Impact Player in this encounter. Parag confirmed the same at the toss. The wicketkeeper-batter will come in to bat in the second innings of the clash, adding more firepower to Royals’ batting lineup. He is expected to open the batting alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal.
What did both the captains say at the toss?
Riyan Parag (Rajasthan Royals)
Bowling first. Looks like a dry wicket so we’ll have a crack at it later. (On captaincy) Means a lot, started here as a 17 year old. Getting to fill in big shoes, very excited. The impact rule helps with Sanju. We’ve retained a lot of our core so that helps with the batting order. The other three overseas will be Theekshana, Jofra and Farooqi. Always good to start well, we have practiced a lot.
Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
It is great to be back. The core of the group is the same, the coaching staff is the same. Don’t think batting or bowling first matters. It is pretty hot, so don’t mind bowling second. Would be nice to keep last season’s form going. We always encourage our games to play with freedom. Abhi and Heady will hopefully continue from last year, and Nitish and Klassen are there as well. Ishan Kishan and Abhinav Manohar will be making their debuts.
SRH vs RR Playing XIs
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins(c), Simarjeet Singh, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubham Dubey, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag(c), Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Impact Subs: Sanju Samson, Kunal Singh Rathore, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Kwena Maphaka
India
