Sunrisers Hyderabad had a fantastic outing in the IPL 2024 as they ended up as runners-up in that season. Despite holding onto the core of their stars, SRH had a dismal outing in the IPL 2025 season.
SRH
endured a mixed IPL 2025 campaign, finishing sixth in the league table with 13 points from six wins and one no result. They started the season superbly, even posting record-breaking totals such as 286/4 against Rajasthan Royals, but their promise evaporated as key players underperformed, as both the batting and bowling departments lacked consistency.
Despite a squad packed with star names, SRH's overall display was summarized as "big names, tiny performance" and they missed out on a playoff berth after a disappointing stretch in the middle of the season.
Following their underwhelming campaign, SRH is projected to execute a strategic overhaul in the IPL 2026 auction. Management intends to free up purse funds and slots by releasing several high-profile and underperforming assets, thus building a flexible, well-balanced squad for the coming season. Their plan will likely involve retaining the majority of consistent performers while releasing expensive buys who failed to have a major impact and focusing on their pace bowling, which had some issues last season.
Six Potential Player Releases for IPL 2026 Auction
SRH could release up to six notable players to reshape their purse and targets. Combined with the release of Pat Cummins, who commanded a high contract of Rs 18 crore, these moves could significantly aid SRH's purse flexibility. Notably, Shami was acquired for Rs 10 crore, Harshal Patel for Rs 8 crore, Rahul Chahar for Rs 3.2 crore, Adam Zampa for Rs 2.4 crore, and Abhinav Manohar for Rs 3.2 crore. Eshan Malinga also cost them around Rs 1.2 crore in the mega-auction.
Shami had an underwhelming outing for the Orange Army last time, while Harshal Patel didn't make any significant contributions. On the other hand, the likes of Rahul Chahar and Abhinav Manohar both were not up to the mark. Pat Cummins, SRH's captain, has been struggling with injury issues and that may prompt the franchise to think beyond the Australian ahead of the IPL 2026 season.
Releasing these six, plus Cummins, would allow SRH to free up nearly Rs 46 crore, making them powerful for for smart buys and probable trades as well.
