Saqib Hussain, the 21-year-old uncapped fast bowler from Gopalganj, Bihar, made history with figures of 4 for 24 against Rajasthan Royals on his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday.Saqib is the seventh player in IPL history to take four or more wickets on debut, and is now joint-fifth with Ashwini Kumar for the joint-best bowling figures in a debut game. He is behind Al-Zari Joseph (6/12), Andrew Tye (5/17), Shoaib Akhtar (4/11).Saqib partnered with another SRH debutant Praful Hinge (4/34) as Sunrisers Hyderabad registered a 57-run win in Hyderabad.Fans at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium expected a high-scoring encounter in the IPL 2026 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals on Monday. Instead, they saw a performance led by two debutant fast bowlers – Praful Henge and Saqib Hussain as SRH beat RR by 57 runs.Best bowling figures on IPL debut
- Alzari Joseph – 6/12 (MI vs SRH, Hyderabad, 2019)
- Andrew Tye – 5/17 (GL vs RPS, Rajkot, 2017)
- Shoaib Akhtar – 4/11 (KKR vs DC, Kolkata, 2008)
- Kevin Cooper – 4/26 (RR vs PBKS, Jaipur, 2012)
- Ashwini Kumar – 4/24 (MI vs KKR, Mumbai WS, 2025)
- Saqib Hussain – 4/24 (SRH vs RR, Hyderabad, 2026)
- David Wiese – 4/33 (RCB vs MI, Bengaluru, 2015)
- Prafulhenge – 4/34 (SRH vs RR, Hyderabad, 2026)
Indian player with 4-fer in his first IPL spell
- 4/24 – Shadab Jakati (CSK) vs DC, Johannesburg, 2009
- 4/24 – Ashwini Kumar (MI) vs KKR, Mumbai WS, 2025
- 4/24 – Saqib Hussain (SRH) vs RR, Hyderabad, 2026
- 4/29 – Paul Walthati (PBKS) vs Deccan Chargers, Hyderabad, 2011
- 4/34 – Prafulhenge (SRH) vs RR, Hyderabad, 2026
(all exposed)
Who is Saqib Hussain?
IPL scouts have tracked Saqib’s progress.The Bihar fast bowler was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs 30 lakh in the IPL 2026 auction. He was earlier signed by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the IPL 2024 season but did not get any games and was released before the next season.The right-arm pacer made his T20 debut for Bihar in the 2022-23 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. At the age of 17, he recorded figures of 4 for 20 in his second match.Saqib took his first five-wicket haul in the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy against Arunachal Pradesh with 6 for 41.In the IPL 2026 auction, Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for Rs 30 lakh, and the fast bowler rattled Rajasthan Royals’ dreaded batting line-up on his debut on Monday.
