IPL 2026: Sunrisers Hyderabad chased down almost 250 runs last night against the Mumbai Indians. Amid Sri Lanka’s greatest spinner Muthaiya Muralidharan, takes a dig at the BCCI on why bowlers are under pressure and why Teams are not able to save 250-run targets. A former Sri Lankan great remarked that the IPL is increasingly seen as a commercial and entertainment-driven spectacle, rather than a stage dedicated to nurturing the sport itself.
250 is not Enough?
The comment comes on the back of yet another high-scoring encounter where even a 200-plus total wasn’t enough to seal the game. On April 29, Sunrisers Hyderabad chased down a daunting 244 against the Mumbai Indians with eight balls to spare. It followed a similar trend to the previous night, when Rajasthan Royals successfully hunted down a 200-plus target set by Punjab Kings on April 28. Not long before that, Punjab Kings had pulled off a record-breaking chase of 265 against Delhi Capitals, getting home with an over to spare.
From the opening to the middle order
Teams are no longer feeling their way through the powerplay. They’re going hard from ball one, and that shift has pushed totals through the roof. The bulk of the damage is coming from the top order, with openers and No. 3s scoring at a far quicker clip than the middle order or even the designated finishers.
Muttiah Murlitharan slammed badly
“We have to look at the pitches,” said Muttiah Muralitharan after SRH’s game against MI, when asked if shorter boundaries were making life difficult for bowlers. “If we prepare more balanced wickets, people might end up calling it boring.Muralitharan made it clear that the blame shouldn’t fall on the bowlers for the run glut. In his view, the nature of the surfaces and the overall setup of the IPL are geared towards high-scoring contests, with entertainment taking priority.”
Scary feat in IPL 2026
After 40 matches of IPL 2026, teams have already breached the 200-run mark on 31 occasions, underlining the batting-friendly conditions this season. What’s more striking is how often those big scores haven’t been enough, with nine successful chases of 200-plus targets recorded so far.
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