Qualification Scenarios: SRH Eye Top-Two Finish, Fourth Spot Still Up for Grabs

GT's 89-run win over CSK on Thursday confirmed them a top-two finish for the third time in five editions. That leaves RCB and SRH to reserve the remaining spot in Qualifier 1 in Dharamsala. Meanwhile, RR, PBKS, and KKR remain in the hunt for the fourth spot.

All NRR calculations assume a first-innings score of 200.

SRH vs RCB, Hyderabad, May 22

What SRH needs to break into top two:

• Win by at least 87 runs, or
• Chase down the target in 11 overs or fewer

RR vs MI, Mumbai WS, May 24

• A win for RR seals a playoffs spot.

If RR loses, they qualify only if:

• LSG beats PBKS on Friday, and
• DC beats KKR in the final league fixture

LSG vs PBKS (May 23) and KKR vs DC (May 24)

PBKS can qualify without NRR if:

• They beat LSG
• MI beats RR
• DC beats KKR

KKR can qualify without NRR if:

• LSG beats PBKS
• MI beats RR
• They beat DC

If Both PBKS and KKR Win and RR Finish at 14 Points

• PBKS hold NRR advantage over KKR (+0.227 vs +0.011).

If PBKS beats LSG by 10 runs, they finish at 15 points with NRR of +0.246.

• They would need to beat DC by 61 runs, or
• Chase down the target in 13.5 overs

A scenario exists where DC ties at 14 with RR, and both PBKS and KKR finish at 13. However, DC's NRR of -0.871 leaves them unlikely to qualify.

If MI beats RR by 100 runs, RR's NRR drops to -0.308. For DC to surpass that, they would need to beat KKR by at least 129 runs.