"You need a fourth overseas player" - Aakash Chopra outlines SRH's playing 11 ahead of IPL 2026 Auction

Former cricketer Aakash Chopra outlined the playing 11 for SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. Chopra reckoned that the 2016 champions needed to fix their bowling.

He expressed that they maintained their batting core, but needed an upgrade in the bowling, as it was an aspect where they struggled last season. With Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, and skipper Pat Cummins certain, Aakash Chopra stated that they needed to look for a quality fourth overseas player.

Highlighting their need for a solid overseas pacer, he reflected that Matheesha Pathirana or Anrich Nortje could be among their top choices at the auction. He added they would also have to look for spinners.

"They need bowlers. While it is a bowlers graveyard, it is not always the case of bat versus bat. They have maintained their batting core. You need a fourth overseas player. A bit of an upgrade in the bowling department. Bowling is an area where they fell short. We have to wait and watch but they need a gun bowler. Maybe Pathirana or Nortje as there are not many names on the table. They have to add spinners because Zeeshan cannot be your only option," he said on Star Sports.

Picking the playing 11 for SRH ahead of the auction, Aakash Chopra started with openers Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head. He picked Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, and Nitish Kumar Reddy in the middle. Chopra left the number six slot empty, picking Aniket Verma at seven. He then included Pat Cummins at eight and Harshal Patel at nine. Jayden Unadkat followed at ten with Zeeshan Ansari at eleven. The impact player slot was also left empty.

SRH finished sixth last season with six wins from their 14 matches.

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Aakash Chopra picks playing 11 for Gujarat Titans (GT) ahead of the IPL 2026 auction

In the same video, Aakash Chopra also picked the playing 11 for the Gujarat Titans (GT). He predicted that all-rounder Washington Sundar may be seen batting at number four. With Sherfane Rutherford traded out, he reckoned that they could replace the West Indian with Glenn Phillips, who is part of their squad.

Aakash Chopra felt that they might look at a backup for pacer Kagiso Rabada, but would not have much to do otherwise.

"I think we will see the rise of Sundar, slightly bigger role this season batting at four. There is still Glenn Philips there so you can get him into the mix as Rutherford is not there. Put Shah Rukh as the impact player and the team is sorted. This team was ready, and will be ready. It is a good team. They might want somebody as a backup seamer for Rabada. They just need backups, their team is set," he said.

Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan were his openers, followed by Jos Buttler at three, Washington Sundar at four, Glenn Phillips at five, and Rahul Tewatia at six. At number seven, he picked Afghanistan all-rounder Rashid Khan. For the bowlers, he picked Prasidh Krishna, Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, and Mohammed Siraj. Chopra added Shah Rukh Khan as the impact player.

GT made it to the playoffs but lost against the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Eliminator last season.