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IPL 2026: Rajasthan Royals (RR) will square off against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 36th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Saturday, April 25.

Can Riyan Parag End His Lean Patch In IPL 2026 During RR vs SRH Clash?

Ahead of the fixture, RR skipper Riyan Parag has come under the scanner following his poor run of form in IPL 2026. The 24-year-old has become a target of criticism after continuing to struggle in the 19th edition of the tournament.

So far this season, Parag has played seven matches and scored only 81 runs at a strike rate of 117.39 and an average of 13.50. In RR’s win over Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in their previous outing, he managed 20 runs from 19 balls at a strike rate of 105.26, hitting two fours and one six.

Kumar Sangakkara Backs Struggling Riyan Parag

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Rajasthan Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara defended Parag, stressing that the franchise fully backs him. He added that the skipper needs just one good knock to regain confidence.

“I think he’s batting really well. When you’re batting well, sometimes you don’t always score. I would have been concerned if he wasn’t hitting the ball well. I think he’s hitting it really well. He just needs to stitch together a few more runs so that he sets himself a good platform to attack in the end,” Sangakkara said.

The head coach also highlighted how Parag has embraced captaincy in IPL 2026.

“As a player, as a batter, the franchise backs him 100 per cent. And what’s really exciting for me is to see how he has just embraced the captaincy and the leadership. Even in the last game, you could see how good a captain he was. He will learn more and more about pressure, and he will get better,” he added.

Parag has played 91 matches and 79 innings in his IPL career, scoring 1,647 runs at a strike rate of 140.40 and an average of 24.95.

Currently, Rajasthan Royals sit third on the IPL 2026 standings with 10 points and a net run rate of +0.790.