IPL 2026 SRH vs RCB: Cummins is fit and working on his bowling load, says SRH head coach Vettori

Sunrisers Hyderabad will take a call on pacer Pat Cummins’ availability in about 10 to 12 days, head coach Daniel Vettori said. Cummins is fit, but is working on his bowling load, Vettori said.

“His fitness has been exceptional. He’s been out of the game for an extended period of time, so he’s had time to work on fitness. The only challenge for him was the bowling load. Once he got the all-clear from Cricket Australia to build those bowling loads, it’s a bit of a painstaking process to get the lungs up to where he feels confident and strong about bowling. Hopefully, we can get a definitive timeline, probably in the next 10-12 days, on when he can return to play,” Vettori said in the pre-match press conference on Friday (March 27, 2026).

Vettori stated that three Indian uncapped batters — R. Smaran, Salil Arora, and Aniket Verma — are all in the race to gain spots in the playing XI. “Smaran is probably in the best form among anyone in India. Salil’s form in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy and warm-up games has been incredibly impressive. Abhishek (Sharma) has been a huge fan of him. We just have to balance our fifth and sixth bowler options against a very strong RCB batting line-up,” Vettori said.

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Stand-in captain Ishan Kishan and his deputy Abhishek form the right leadership group, Vettori said. “Kishan has been around in the IPL for a long time now. He has led in the under-19s, and he has led his State team to the Syed Mushtaq title. He is a confident player and a leader, attributes that we looked at when he was appointed. Kishan and Abhishek are good friends, and they know the team exceptionally well. They will lead from the front,” the former New Zealand captain said.