Abhishek Sharma (Image credit: BCCI/IPL) NEW DELHI: Explosive Sunrisers Hyderabad opener Abhishek Sharma registered an unwanted record during the IPL 2026 clash with Rajasthan Royals, falling for a golden duck and leaving the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in stunned silence. Known for his attacking approach, Abhishek was dismissed on the very first ball by Royals pacer Jofra Archer. He opened alongside Travis Head and charged down the track in an attempt to dominate early but only managed a thick top edge with Ravi Bishnoi completing a simple catch in the deep.A visibly frustrated Abhishek hit the bat with his gloves as he walked back, clearly disappointed at the early dismissal.It marked the 24th time Rajasthan Royals had been caught before conceding a run – the most by any team in IPL history – with Mumbai Indians another 22. It was also the 12th time Rajasthan Royals had struck on the first ball of an innings, another league record.The duck against RR was Abhishek’s seventh in 18 T20 innings in 2026 – the most by any player that year. Cooper Connolly is next on the list with four ducks in 17 innings.
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Kane Williamson to bat for LSG, Pooran and Pant after the IPL 2026 clash He also set an unwanted Indian record for most ducks in a calendar year in T20s, going past Rohit Sharma and Sanju Samson. Abhishek has seven ducks in 2026 (18 innings), compared to Rohit’s six in 2018 (32 innings) and Samson’s six in 2024 (32 innings). Gurkeerat Singh Mann had five ducks in 2013 (19 innings).Among the Sunrisers Hyderabad batsmen, only Shikhar Dhawan was earlier dismissed off the first ball of an IPL match – against Chennai Super Kings in Qualifier 1 2018 – and now Abhishek has joined the list.It was also the fourth time Archer had taken a wicket off the first ball of an IPL innings. Mohammed Shami leads the list with five such instances, while Archer is second with four.Earlier, Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to bowl. Royals rested Shimron Hetmyer and Brijesh Sharma, brought in Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Tushar Deshpande. Sunrisers Hyderabad included Praful Hinge in the XI while Harshal Patel was named among the impact substitutes.Teams:Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (c&wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora, Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harsh Dubey, Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Praful Hinge.Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Tushar Deshpande.
