TATA IPL 2026, Match 31: SRH vs DC Highlights – Abhishek Sharma's Historic 135* Turns Hyderabad Into a Fortress
Okay, let me just say this upfront — I've been watching IPL cricket for well over a decade now, and on the night of April 21, 2026, I witnessed something at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad that I genuinely did not think I'd see again so soon. Abhishek Sharma, a 24-year-old left-hander from Amritsar, walked in at the top of the order and proceeded to dismantle the Delhi Capitals bowling attack in a way that left my jaw hanging open for the better part of the evening. If you missed Match 31 of TATA IPL 2026 between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Delhi Capitals (DC), you missed one of the finest individual batting performances in the tournament's history. Let me take you through every moment of it — the highs, the lows, the drama, and yes, a few of my own strong opinions along the way.
Match Overview: SRH vs DC at a Glance
Before I dive into the details, let me set the stage with a quick snapshot so you know exactly what went down:
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Match Number | 31, TATA IPL 2026 |
| Date | April 21, 2026 |
| Venue | Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad |
| Teams | Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) vs Delhi Capitals (DC) |
| Toss | DC won; elected to bowl first |
| SRH Score | 242/2 (20 overs) |
| DC Score | 195/9 (20 overs) |
| Result | SRH won by 47 runs |
| Player of the Match | Abhishek Sharma (SRH) – 135* off 68 balls |
SRH's third consecutive win of the season. A record-breaking individual knock. A bowling performance that was clinical from ball one. This match had everything, and I'm going to walk you through all of it from my perspective as someone who actually sat up late watching every delivery.
The Pre-Match Situation: Both Teams at Six Points
Going into this game, both SRH and DC were sitting on six points each in the TATA IPL 2026 standings. On paper, it looked like a closely contested tie between two equally matched sides. But cricket, as we all know, is not played on paper.
Why I Was Always Backing SRH
My honest read before the match was that SRH had the upper hand, and here is why. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium is basically SRH's living room. The crowd was going to be massive and roaring orange, and teams like SRH — built around explosive top-order batting — absolutely thrive in those conditions. Their top three of Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, and Ishan Kishan were scoring at a run rate of 11.65 in the powerplay this season, the best among all ten teams in IPL 2026. That is extraordinary. Think about it like this: if you put five fuel tanks on a racing car, it is going to leave every other vehicle on the track behind before the first lap is even halfway done.
DC's Weaknesses Going Into the Game
Delhi Capitals, on the other hand, had a well-documented concern — their top three were scoring at just 9.28 runs per over, ranked ninth among all teams. More critically, their top-order had hit a measly 12 sixes across five games. SRH, by contrast, had already put away 34 sixes at the top. That difference is not small. That is the difference between a water pistol and a fire hose. DC also had an unsettled No.3 position, with players like Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, and Karun Nair all being tried in that slot with mixed results. To their credit, DC strengthened their batting combination for this game by bringing in Nitish Rana in place of Auqib Nabi. But as the match would prove, that adjustment was not nearly enough.
Toss and Team News
DC captain Axar Patel won the toss and made the call to bowl first. In hindsight, it was a decision that looked reasonable at the time — there was a hint of cloud cover early in the evening, and asking SRH to bat first meant DC could potentially exploit some early movement with the new ball. Axar himself, I should mention, has maintained a 100% strike rate at the toss in IPL 2026. The problem is that winning the toss and then executing the plan are two very different things, especially when you are up against Abhishek Sharma in his home stadium on a flat track.
SRH Playing XI
- Abhishek Sharma
- Travis Head
- Ishan Kishan (Captain)
- Heinrich Klaasen
- Aniket Verma
- Nitish Kumar Reddy
- Salil Arora (Wicketkeeper)
- Shivang Kumar
- Harsh Dubey
- Sakib Hussain
- Eshan Malinga
- Impact Player: Dilshan Madushanka
DC Playing XI
- Pathum Nissanka
- KL Rahul
- Nitish Rana
- David Miller
- Tristan Stubbs
- Sameer Rizvi
- Axar Patel (Captain)
- Ashutosh Sharma
- Nitish Kumar Reddy (DC)
- Harsh Dubey (DC)
- Lungi Ngidi
One interesting subplot here was the debut of Dilshan Madushanka for SRH. The Sri Lankan left-arm seamer was supposed to debut in the previous match, but SRH had collapsed badly and had to bring in an extra batter as the Impact Player. This time, though, with only two wickets falling, Madushanka got to walk out and make his IPL debut. And let me tell you, he made it count.
SRH Batting First: The Abhishek Sharma Show Begins
I want you to imagine you are sitting in Hyderabad on a warm April evening. The stadium is packed. The orange-and-black banners are everywhere. The atmosphere is electric. And then Abhishek Sharma walks to the crease, adjusts his helmet, and starts hitting the ball into the stands like it is the easiest thing in the world. That is what April 21 felt like.
The Opening Powerplay: 67/0 in 6 Overs
SRH smashed through the powerplay with complete authority. Abhishek and Travis Head crossed the 50-run mark in just 4.4 overs. Let that sink in. Most teams celebrate 50 runs by the end of the fifth or sixth over; SRH were already there before the fifth over was even finished. By the time the six powerplay overs were done, the scoreboard read 67 for 0.
Nitish Rana was tried with the ball early — his offspin was supposed to target the three left-handers in the SRH top order. He bowled a decent enough over but was unable to create any real pressure. Abhishek was just too good. He was reading the line early, getting into position quickly, and timing the ball with frightening precision.
Travis Head's Contribution and Dismissal
Travis Head, the Australian opener who has been a vital cog in SRH's batting engine, played his role well. He scored 37 off 26 balls — not his best by his own high standards, but a solid, aggressive contribution that helped build the platform. It was Axar Patel who eventually got Head out, ending a 97-run opening stand. At that point, the score was somewhere around 97 for 1, and you could already sense that DC were going to need something extraordinary to contain SRH from there.
Abhishek Sharma Reaches His 50 in 25 Balls
By the time Head departed, Abhishek had already reached his third half-century of the season — and he got there in just 25 balls. That is the kind of scoring rate that just breaks bowling plans. When a batter is hitting at that pace, the bowler is forced to bowl defensively, which often means more pace on the ball — exactly what Abhishek loves. It is like pressing the accelerator on a sports car and then wondering why the car is speeding.
The Century: A Moment I'll Remember
Abhishek reached his century off just 47 balls. His hundred came in the most Abhishek way possible — a long hop pulled over deep midwicket for a towering six. He turned around, looked at the crowd, and soaked it all in. His family was reportedly watching from the stands. I genuinely got goosebumps watching that moment. This was his ninth T20 century overall, which put him level with Virat Kohli for the most T20 hundreds by an Indian batter. Only three players in the entire world have more T20 centuries than Abhishek Sharma. He is in the company of the absolute greats of the format.
Ishan Kishan: A Quick but Costly Cameo
Captain Ishan Kishan came in at No. 3 and played a brisk 25 off 13 before being run out in slightly unfortunate fashion. He backed up a touch too far at the non-striker's end, and Nitish Rana — bowling at the time — deflected a drive onto the stumps and caught Kishan short of his crease. It was one of those things that happen in T20 cricket, and while it cost SRH a wicket, the damage to DC's spirits was arguably bigger. They had worked hard to get that breakthrough, only to have Abhishek still standing at the other end, unbeaten and unmovable.
Heinrich Klaasen: The Perfect Finisher
If Abhishek Sharma was the main course, Heinrich Klaasen was the decadent dessert. The South African wicketkeeper-batter came in later in the innings and absolutely exploded. He scored 37 off just 13 balls, at a strike rate of 284.61. I mean — 284! That is not just fast hitting; that is basically batting in a completely different dimension. Klaasen's reverse paddles, his ability to read and exploit the death bowling, his sheer audacity against his fellow South African Lungi Ngidi — two sixes in the 18th over — it was breathtaking to watch.
The Abhishek-Klaasen stand was worth 66 runs off just 29 balls or so. Together, they pushed SRH past 200 and then past 242 — a total that was always going to be an Everest to climb.
SRH Final Score: 242/2 in 20 Overs
Abhishek Sharma finished unbeaten on 135 off 68 balls — 7 fours and 10 sixes. That is his second entry in the top-five IPL scores of all time. He equalled his own SRH record for most sixes in an innings. The 10 sixes he hit tonight were as many as DC's top three had managed across the entire tournament up to that point. You just cannot write better cricket drama than that.
DC Chase: Brave but Never Really Believable
Chasing 243 in T20 cricket is not impossible. MI have done it, CSK have done it, and SRH themselves have come close in the past. But to pull off something like that, you need a perfect start, sustained aggression, and no wickets in the powerplay. DC got none of those things.
Early Wicket: Nissanka Falls to Madushanka
IPL debutant Dilshan Madushanka struck in his very first over — removing his Sri Lankan national teammate Pathum Nissanka for 8 off 6. It was a length delivery that Nissanka tried to carve over cover but could only manage a catch to Liam Livingstone at mid-off. Madushanka celebrated with quiet joy — a proud, emotional moment for him — and it set the tone for what would be a long, difficult evening for the Delhi Capitals.
KL Rahul: The Brightest DC Spark
KL Rahul walked in and immediately showed his class. He hit the ball cleanly, found the boundaries when needed, and reached 37 off 23 balls before Sakib Hussain dismissed him. Three sixes from Rahul. It was a great knock — but in the context of a 243-run chase, it was never going to be enough on its own. DC needed at least two big knocks simultaneously, and that just did not happen.
Nitish Rana: The Lone DC Warrior
If there was a DC player who genuinely gave me a flicker of hope that something special might be brewing, it was Nitish Rana. Coming in at No. 3, he played an outstanding 57 off 30 balls. He was hitting the ball cleanly, targeting the SRH spinners, and bringing a sense of urgency and purpose to the chase. Rana and KL Rahul put together an 86-run second-wicket partnership that took DC past 100 in the ninth over and gave them a mathematical chance.
But here is the problem with chasing 243 in T20 — the asking rate never really dips below 12 or 13 when you lose a wicket, and every time DC's batters got set, another wicket would fall. It is like running on a treadmill that keeps speeding up. You can stay on for a while, but eventually the pace becomes too much.
Eshan Malinga: The Match-Clinching Over
If Abhishek Sharma was SRH's hero with the bat, Eshan Malinga was the hero with the ball. The Sri Lankan right-arm seamer was absolutely clinical, and he delivered the killing blow in the 10th and 11th overs. In two consecutive deliveries in the same over, he dismissed Nitish Rana — who mistimed one to deep cover where Abhishek Sharma took a sharp catch — and then bowled David Miller with a beauty that came back in sharply and chopped through the gate. Miller did not score. Two balls, two wickets, 0 runs. That was the moment the match ended as a contest.
Malinga finished the night with 4 wickets for 32 runs. His ability to generate reverse swing, his clever off-cutters, and his habit of taking wickets in clusters made him virtually unplayable when he was in his groove. I had been noting Malinga as one of the more underrated players in IPL 2026, and this performance confirmed everything I had been saying to friends about him.
Harsh Dubey: The Economy King
While Malinga was the star bowler, spare a thought for Harsh Dubey's incredible spell in the death overs. In a match where most bowlers were leaking over 10 runs per over, Dubey bowled with an economy rate of 6.00, finishing with figures of 3 wickets for 12 runs in 2 overs. He dismissed Axar Patel, Sameer Rizvi, and Lungi Ngidi in quick succession to shut down the DC innings completely in the final stages.
It is genuinely difficult to bowl that well under death-over pressure against experienced T20 batters. Dubey's slower balls, his variations in trajectory, and his ability to hit the yorker under pressure were a big reason why DC's lower order never managed the kind of onslaught that might have made the final score slightly more respectable.
Middle-Order Contributions That Could Not Rescue DC
Sameer Rizvi contributed a fighting 41 off 27 balls and Tristan Stubbs made a brisk 27 off 16, but these were ultimately small fires in a heavy storm. The asking rate kept climbing, and by the time DC were in their 12th over with three wickets down, SRH were already celebrating in their heads. The visitors needed roughly 137 runs off the last 58 balls — a target that needed a miracle innings, which was not on the cards against this bowling lineup.
DC's Final Score: 195/9
Delhi Capitals were eventually bowled out for 195 in 20 overs. In any other T20 game, 195 is a wonderful, competitive score. But against SRH's 242, it was a 47-run defeat. I have to say — DC did not play badly. They just ran into an extraordinary day for SRH. Rana's fifty, Rahul's quick cameo, Rizvi and Stubbs fighting in the middle overs — these were real contributions. The problem was that SRH simply had too many runs on the board.
Key Milestones and Records from Match 31
This was a match loaded with individual and team records. Let me break them down:
Abhishek Sharma's Historic Night
- His 135* is the highest individual score of IPL 2026 so far.
- It is his second entry into the top-five IPL scores of all time.
- His 9th T20 century equals Virat Kohli's record for most T20 centuries by an Indian batter.
- He equalled his own SRH record of 10 sixes in an innings.
- Only three players in T20 history have more international/franchise centuries than Abhishek Sharma.
- He carried his bat — batting through the entire 20-over innings — for the first time in his IPL career.
- He reached his century in just 47 balls.
Team Records
- SRH's 242/2 is one of the highest totals posted in IPL 2026 so far.
- SRH secured their third consecutive win of the season and fourth overall.
- The result lifted SRH to joint second on the points table alongside RCB and RR, albeit with those teams having a game in hand.
- The 97-run opening stand between Abhishek and Head in under 10 overs set the tone for everything that followed.
Playing XI Analysis: What Worked and What Didn't
SRH: Nearly Every Decision Clicked
From my perspective, SRH's team selection for this game was close to perfect. The inclusion of Harsh Dubey as the left-arm spinner targeting DC's right-hand middle order was a calculated call. Bringing Dilshan Madushanka in as the Impact Player was vindicated immediately when he took a wicket in his debut over. And the core of the batting unit — Abhishek, Head, Kishan, Klaasen — fired exactly as planned.
One thing I will say: Ishan Kishan's run-out was unfortunate and slightly careless, but it did not cost SRH anything in the grand scheme. When you have 242 on the board, you can afford the odd dismissal in unusual circumstances.
DC: Good Intentions, Wrong Execution
DC's decision to include Nitish Rana in place of Auqib Nabi showed intent — they wanted extra batting depth and an option to bowl at SRH's left-handers. In theory, that is sensible planning. In practice, Rana conceded 23 runs in one over from Abhishek Sharma, who hit him for three sixes and a four. The best-laid plans, as they say, have a habit of falling apart when Abhishek is in that kind of mood.
I also feel that DC missed not having a bowler with genuine pace who could surprise Abhishek and Head in the first six overs. Their bowling lineup was competent but slightly predictable, and SRH's top order thrives against predictability.
My Personal Takeaways from This Match
I have a confession to make. When DC won the toss and decided to bowl first, I thought they had made a smart move. I expected SRH to score something around 190-200, DC to chase it down with Rahul and Rana leading the way, and the match to go down to the wire. I was spectacularly wrong, and honestly, I could not be happier about it. Great cricket makes fools of us all, and that is exactly what makes it such a beautiful sport.
Abhishek Sharma Is a Genuine T20 Legend in the Making
I have said this to my friends, I have said it on fan forums, and I will say it here plainly: Abhishek Sharma is not just a good T20 player. He is becoming one of the genuinely great ones. His technique is surprisingly solid for someone who plays at such a high tempo. He does not just slog the ball; he hits it to very specific areas, reads the field intelligently, and takes calculated risks at exactly the right moments.
To carry your bat through a 20-over IPL innings for the first time in your career — and end up with 135 — is something that even the greats of the format have struggled to do. Chris Gayle did it a handful of times. AB de Villiers never quite managed it. Abhishek Sharma did it on April 21, 2026, and he made it look almost casual. Almost.
Eshan Malinga Is SRH's Secret Weapon
I've been banging the drum about Eshan Malinga for weeks now, and this performance just confirmed it. The young Sri Lankan seamer is a genuine match-winner. His 4/32 in this game — particularly that devastating double-wicket over in which he removed Rana and Miller — was worth its weight in gold. His reverse swing, his off-cutters, and his read of the game situation are well beyond his years. SRH have a real gem here.
DC Need to Find a More Explosive Opening Partnership
My honest feeling is that DC's biggest problem is that their opening combination is not volatile enough for a chase of this magnitude. KL Rahul is a wonderful cricketer, but he plays at a measured, controlled pace. Pathum Nissanka is a technically gifted player but not the kind of batter who explodes from ball one the way Abhishek or Head do for SRH. Against a target like 243, DC needed a power-hitting Buttler or a de Kock-type player — someone who could take the attack on from the first ball and give the team a fighting chance in the powerplay.
Points Table Update After Match 31
Here is how the IPL 2026 points table looked after this match:
| Position | Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RCB / RR (game in hand) | Varies | – | – | 8 |
| 2 | SRH | 7 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| – | DC | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
SRH's momentum is real and it is building. Three wins in a row after a slightly shaky start to the season — that kind of form going into the back half of the group stage is very dangerous for the other nine teams in this tournament.
What This Win Means for SRH's Season
Going into the second half of the group stage, SRH are looking formidable in a way that reminds me of their 2024 season when they were posting 200-plus totals for fun. The difference now is that their bowling looks much more settled. Malinga's emergence as a genuine wicket-taker, Dubey's ability to bowl at the death with economy and control, and Madushanka's debut performance — all of these point toward a more complete team than last year's SRH, which was brilliant in batting but sometimes leaked too many in the bowling department.
If Abhishek Sharma continues this form — and frankly, there is no reason to think he won't — SRH could go very deep in this tournament. The only worry for them is Pat Cummins' availability (more on that another time), but they clearly have enough firepower to manage even without their big-name overseas seamer for now.
What This Loss Means for DC's Playoffs Chances
Delhi Capitals are on six points after six games. They are still very much in the race for the top four, but this defeat — and the manner of it — will sting. Losing by 47 runs to a team on a flat Hyderabad pitch is a result that can hurt confidence, especially for the bowlers who went for 242. But I genuinely believe DC have the quality to bounce back. Axar Patel is an excellent captain. The middle order, when fully firing, is capable of chasing big totals. They just need one good game where everything clicks — and in T20 cricket, that kind of reset can happen very quickly.
Star Performers Summary
Batting
| Player | Team | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abhishek Sharma* | SRH | 135* | 68 | 7 | 10 | 198.52 |
| Heinrich Klaasen* | SRH | 37* | 13 | 2 | 4 | 284.61 |
| Travis Head | SRH | 37 | 26 | 4 | 2 | 142.30 |
| Nitish Rana | DC | 57 | 30 | 3 | 5 | 190.00 |
| KL Rahul | DC | 37 | 23 | 1 | 3 | 160.86 |
| Sameer Rizvi | DC | 41 | 27 | 2 | 2 | 151.85 |
Bowling
| Player | Team | Overs | Wickets | Runs | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eshan Malinga | SRH | 4 | 4 | 32 | 8.00 |
| Harsh Dubey | SRH | 2 | 3 | 12 | 6.00 |
| Dilshan Madushanka | SRH | 4 | 1 | – | – |
| Axar Patel | DC | 4 | 1 | – | – |
Conclusion: A Night That Reminded Me Why I Love the IPL
You know, there are some matches that you watch and feel were just transactional — two teams, ninety overs of T20 cricket, and a result. And then there are matches like this one that remind you why the Indian Premier League, for all its noise and commercialism and drama, is the greatest franchise cricket tournament the world has ever seen.
Abhishek Sharma's 135 not out was one of the most breathtaking individual T20 innings I have personally ever watched. The combination of his power, his judgment, his composure, and the sheer joy with which he played — walking off the field unbeaten after 20 overs, having carried his bat for the first time in his IPL career — felt like a defining moment in the story of a generational talent. For a young man from Amritsar to stand at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on a Tuesday evening, equalling Virat Kohli's record for most T20 centuries by an Indian, feels like the kind of story that cricket was made to tell.
SRH are flying right now. Three consecutive wins, a settled batting lineup, a bowling unit that has discovered some real match-winners. The orange army is loud and confident and every team in IPL 2026 should be paying attention.
As for Delhi Capitals — they will learn from this. Axar Patel is a smart captain, Nitish Rana showed he can bat and Rahul is always classy. But if they want to go deep in this tournament, they need to find answers to the questions that Abhishek Sharma and Eshan Malinga asked so bluntly on April 21. The IPL waits for no one.
For me personally, this was one of those nights where I sat alone in my room, completely absorbed by every delivery, completely forgetting the time, completely in awe of what human beings can do with a bat and a ball. That, at the end of everything, is what cricket is about. And TATA IPL 2026 is delivering exactly that — in abundance.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Who won Match 31 of TATA IPL 2026 between SRH and DC?
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) won Match 31 of TATA IPL 2026 against Delhi Capitals (DC) by 47 runs. SRH posted a massive total of 242/2 in 20 overs, and DC could only manage 195/9 in response. The match was played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on April 21, 2026.
What was Abhishek Sharma's score in SRH vs DC IPL 2026 Match 31?
Abhishek Sharma scored an unbeaten 135 off 68 balls in Match 31 of IPL 2026, hitting 7 fours and 10 sixes at a strike rate of approximately 198.52. It was the highest individual score of IPL 2026 at the time and his ninth T20 century overall, equalling Virat Kohli's record for most T20 centuries by an Indian batter.
Who won the toss in SRH vs DC IPL 2026 Match 31?
Delhi Capitals (DC) won the toss in IPL 2026 Match 31. DC captain Axar Patel elected to bowl first, hoping to exploit some early morning conditions and extract movement from the pitch in Hyderabad. However, the plan backfired as SRH's opening pair hit from ball one, eventually posting a mammoth total of 242/2.
How many wickets did Eshan Malinga take in SRH vs DC IPL 2026?
Eshan Malinga took 4 wickets for 32 runs in Match 31 of IPL 2026 for Sunrisers Hyderabad. His most devastating contribution came when he dismissed Nitish Rana and David Miller on consecutive deliveries in the same over, effectively ending Delhi Capitals' chase as a contest. He was SRH's standout bowler of the match.
What record did Abhishek Sharma break in IPL 2026 Match 31 vs DC?
Abhishek Sharma broke several records in Match 31 of IPL 2026. He scored his ninth T20 century, equalling Virat Kohli's record for most T20 hundreds by an Indian batter. He also equalled his own SRH record of 10 sixes in a single innings, and his 135* became the highest individual score of IPL 2026, marking his second entry in the top-five IPL scores of all time.
What was the venue for SRH vs DC Match 31 in IPL 2026?
IPL 2026 Match 31 between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals was played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad, India. The match was played on April 21, 2026, in front of a large and passionate home crowd that heavily supported the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Who was the Player of the Match in SRH vs DC IPL 2026 Match 31?
Abhishek Sharma of Sunrisers Hyderabad was adjudged the Player of the Match for his record-breaking unbeaten innings of 135 off 68 balls. He anchored the SRH innings from the first ball to the last, carrying his bat through the entire 20-over innings for the first time in his IPL career and leading his team to a dominant 47-run victory over Delhi Capitals.
What was Nitish Rana's performance for DC in Match 31 of IPL 2026?
Nitish Rana was DC's best performer in Match 31 of IPL 2026, scoring 57 off 30 balls, which included 3 fours and 5 sixes. His half-century in the middle overs gave Delhi Capitals a brief hope of an unlikely chase, but he was dismissed by Eshan Malinga in the 10th over, which effectively ended DC's realistic chances of pulling off a historic victory.
How did SRH's win against DC impact the IPL 2026 points table?
SRH's 47-run win over DC in Match 31 of IPL 2026 gave them their third consecutive victory of the season and moved them to 8 points from 7 games, level with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) at joint second place on the points table. However, both RCB and RR had a game in hand. Delhi Capitals remained at 6 points from 6 games after the defeat.
Did Dilshan Madushanka make his IPL debut in SRH vs DC Match 31?
Yes, Dilshan Madushanka made his IPL debut in Match 31 of TATA IPL 2026 as SRH's Impact Player. He had originally been set to debut in the previous SRH match, but a batting collapse forced the team to use a batter as the Impact Player instead. Against DC, with SRH losing only two wickets in their innings, Madushanka got his chance and took a wicket in his very first IPL over, dismissing his fellow Sri Lankan Pathum Nissanka.
