Kagiso Rabada Gujarat Titans (PTI Photo) Kagiso Rabada continued his sensational IPL 2026 campaign with another devastating spell with the new ball, toppling Sunrisers Hyderabad’s top order and leveling some of the greatest powerplay bowling seasons in tournament history. Rabada produced a fiery spell of 4-0-28-3 against SRH in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, proving once again why he has been the season’s most devastating fast bowler with the new ball. The South African fast bowler dismissed Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Smaran Ravichandran in a brutal powerplay burst that left Hyderabad in complete disarray.
Watch
Matthew Hayden explains GT’s success formula, Rashid’s comeback and bowling firepower With these wickets, Rabada now has 16 wickets in the power-play this season, which is equal to the second-highest tally in a single edition of the IPL. Only Mohammed Shami, who took 17 power-play wickets in IPL 2023, remains ahead of him. Most powerplay wickets in an IPL season:
- 17 – Mohammed Shami (2023)
- 16 – Mitchell Johnson (2013)
- 16 – Trent Boult (2020)
- 16* – Kagiso Rabada (2026)
Rabada also comfortably leads the IPL 2026 powerplay wicket charts, well ahead of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jofra Archer and Mohammed Siraj.Most powerplay wickets (1-6 overs) in IPL 202616 – KG Rabada (ER: 9.03)*12 – Bhuvneshwar Kumar (ER: 6.91)9 – Jofra Archer (ER: 9.36)9 – Mohammed Siraj (ER: 7.36) The impact of Rabad’s spell was immediate. SRH went to just 34/4 in the first six overs, their second-lowest powerplay tally of IPL 2026 and lost four wickets in a powerplay for the first time this season. After Gujarat Titans posted 168/5 thanks to gutsy half-centuries from Sai Sudharsan and Washington Sundar, Rabada ensured that SRH never settled into the chase. He first removed Abhishek Sharma with extra pace and bounce before trapping Ishan Kishan during SRH’s desperate attempt to rebuild. Rabada then struck again to dismiss Smaran Ravichandran, completing another breathtaking opening spell that tore apart Hyderabad’s aggressive batting line-up. During IPL 2026, Rabada consistently bowled with raw pace, hostile lengths and relentless accuracy, often making the conditions irrelevant. Against SRH, he showed again why Gujarat Titans have one of the most feared pace attacks in the tournament.
