Sunrisers Hyderabad finished sixth in the IPL 2025 points table
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 Auction will take place in a few months, and it will give Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) an opportunity to make up for some of the shortcomings in their squad from last season. Despite reaching the final in 2024, Pat Cummins’ side lacked resilient displays in the recently-concluded edition as they finished sixth in the table because the rest of the bottom half of the table weren’t playing good cricket. They surely need reinforcements in the upcoming auction, and the SRH released players list could help them free up some purse.
Here’s a look at the likely SRH released players list and how their squad might shape up ahead of the IPL 2026 auction.
SRH can go for a clear slate approach like they did in their 2021 auction after several of the senior players failed to perform. But such drastic measures don’t seem to be necessary as they have a lot of batting firepower and talented bowlers in their squad. However, there will few necessary cost cuttings to be done. Ahead of the IPL 2026 Auction, here’s a look at the likely SRH Released Players List:
SRH are likely to retain a major part of their squad but could release a few players depending on. Here’s a look at some of the big players and why they feature in the expected SRH Released Players List:
Sunrisers Hyderabad have bought the Indian pacer for a whopping INR 10 crore in the IPL 2025 auction. He had come off a long-term injury layoff and won the Champions Trophy 2025, but his IPL performances were average at best. The 35-year-old played nine matches and got just six wickets and leaked runs at 11.23. This could see SRH go without the experienced pacer in the auction.
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The spinner’s form in the IPL has gone down drastically as he was able to bowl just a single over in the only match he played in the entire season. It looks highly unlikely that the legspinner will be retained as SRH might go for another quality legspinner in the auction or the trading window.
The Saurashtra pacer is a key player for any side he plays in the IPL. He can take on the most critical overs in the match, even though the results can be mixed. Unadkat has been a journeyman in the last few years in the competition and is likely to head out of SRH for the upcoming season, even though he is far from their worst performer last season.
Here’s how the SRH squad might look after retentions and releases:
Category: Retained
Pat Cummins, Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshal Patel, Ishan Kishan, Aniket Verma, Jaydev Unadkat, Simarjeet Singh, Kamindu Mendis, Zeeshan Ansari, Smaran Ravichandran, Eshan Malinga, Harsh Dubey.
Category: Released
Mohammed Shami, Adam Zampa, Brydon Carse, Wiaan Mulder, Sachin Baby, Atharva Taide, Abhinav Manohar, Rahul Chahar.
Captaincy Status
Pat Cummins is expected to continue leading the franchise.
The England keeper-batter had begun his IPL career with SRH back in 2019 and departed for Punjab Kings after three seasons. SRH desperately need a batter in the top four who can anchor the innings in between a long list of big hitters who can take all the risks. The fact that the Mumbai Indians can’t retain him before the auction can play into SRH’s hands.
Delhi Capitals had brought in the left-arm pacer late into the season as a replacement player for Jake Fraser-McGurk, which can be a big advantage for SRH in the auction. The 2016 champions had seen the Bangladesh star in the dug-out for two seasons, but couldn’t utilise him at the peak of his power, which came after 2018. They could see to bring him back as they need a capable strike bowler.
SRH need a good balance in their ranks with a spin-bowling all-rounder who can bat as a floater depending on the situation. SRH’s batting has been found out in multiple games as they went an all-guns-blazing approach throughout the season. Hooda, who won the title in 2016 with SRH, is a safe bet in the middle and lower-middle order as he has the experience of playing on tricky surfaces in the IPL.
Ravi Bishnoi would’ve been an indispensable asset for any IPL side a few years ago, but his inconsistent performances in the last few seasons might lead to Lucknow Super Giants letting him go, which is something SRH will be wishing for.
Likely released names include Jaydev Unadkat, Simarjeet Singh, Mohammed Shami, Sachin Baby, and Abhinav Manohar.
Sunrisers Hyderabad could go for another Indian seamer like Mayank Yadav, Tushar Deshpande, or Rasikh Salam.
SRH can replace Abhinav Manohar with the upcoming young batters like Robin Minz or Suryansh Shedge.
Mustafizur Rahman or Mukesh Choudhary could be a good option to replace Simarjeet Singh.
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