Jofra Archer Humiliates Abhishek Sharma On First Ball (Source: AFP)
The Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals clash on April 13, 2026, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium saw multiple records broken by English pacer Jofra Archer.
Jofra Archer, who leads the pace attack of Rajasthan in the SRH vs RR IPL 2026 clash, took the massive wicket of Abhishek Sharma, dismissing him for a golden duck by bamboozling the batter.
Jofra Archer Dismisses Abhishek Sharma
As RR won the toss and opted to bowl, Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head came out to open the innings. However, Archer's brilliance stunned Abhishek on the very first ball.
As Archer pitched a short delivery, Abhishek Sharma charged down the track and slashed it towards the outside off. The ball ended up with Ravi Bishnoi, who was stationed at deep third man, near deep backward point.
As Bishnoi pouched Abhishek, Archer successfully scalped a wicket on the very first ball of the SRH vs RR match.
Archer Lands Rare Feat For Team With First-Ball Wicket
This massive feat by Archer has added him to the rare tally of bowlers where Rajasthan Royals players have taken a wicket on the first ball of an IPL match.
Interestingly, Jofra Archer has made it to this tally three times, once with his dismissal of Prithvi Shaw back in 2020 in Dubai, another being the wicket of Phil Salt in the RCB clash in 2026, and the third being tonight's dismissal of Abhishek Sharma.
RR Bowlers to take a wicket on the first ball of an IPL Match
- Sohail Tanvir vs CSK, Jaipur, 2008 (Parthiv Patel)
- Jofra Archer vs DC, Dubai (DICS), 2020 (Prithvi Shaw)
- Trent Boult vs RCB, Bengaluru, 2023 (Virat Kohli)
- Jofra Archer vs RCB, Guwahati, 2026 (Phil Salt)
- Jofra Archer vs SRH, Hyderabad, 2026 (Abhishek Sharma), Tonight*
Along with him, Trent Boult and Sohail Tanvir have also made it to this rare list, where Boult’s wicket came against Virat Kohli, while Tanvir successfully scalped Parthiv Patel back in 2008.
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Archer In 1st Ball Wicket Takers In IPL List
Abhishek Sharma’s dismissal has also led to a major landmark achievement for Jofra Archer, as he became one of the bowlers with the most first-ball wickets in IPL history.
In this list, alongside Archer, Mohammed Shami also tops the chart with five dismissals, while Archer has a total of four.
Most Times taking a Wicket on the 1st ball of the Innings in IPL
- 5 - Mohammed Shami
- 4 - Jofra Archer*
- 3 - Lasith Malinga, Praveen Kumar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ashok Dinda, Pat Cummins, Trent Boult
Players like Lasith Malinga, Praveen Kumar, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have also taken first-ball wickets in the IPL three times.
Notably, Archer has been the second-highest wicket-taker for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2026. The table-toppers have Ravi Bishnoi as their highest wicket-taker and also the holder of the Purple Cap, with 9 wickets from 5 matches.
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Archer’s IPL Achievements
Meanwhile, Jofra Archer has managed to take 6 wickets as he faces Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 13. So far, Archer has also been one of the most economical bowlers, with a rate of 7.93 while striking every 15 deliveries at an average of 19.83.
Archer's excellence comes after vast experience on Indian tracks as well. Debuting in 2018, Archer has played for Rajasthan Royals, with a one-year stint for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2023.
From his 57 IPL outings, Archer has managed to take 65 wickets at an economy rate of 7.88 and an average of 26.32.
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