Sunrisers Hyderabad returned to winning ways as they defeated Chennai Super Kings by six wickets with 11 balls to spare in Uppal, sealing their second win of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. After restricting CSK to a below-par total of 165, the hosts comfortably chased down the total, courtesy a blistering start by Abhishek Sharma and fine 50 off 36 by Aiden Markram, followed by finishing touches from Heinrich Klaasen and Nitish Reddy.
Vintage Bhuvi on show
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was at his best as he read the conditions early and deployed the cutters to trouble the Chennai batters. After an economical over, where he didn’t find swing, Bhuvneshwar started the second over with a short delivery as Rachin Ravindra skied the attempted pull to be dismissed for 12.
In the same over, he nearly got rid of Ajinkya Rahane as well with a ball that straightened from an angle. Although Bhuvi was taken to the cleaners by Ruturaj Gaikwad in his third over (15), the veteran came back strongly, in the 19th over, to concede just six runs as he didn’t give any space for Ravindra Jadeja and Daryll Mitchell to clear the ropes.
It was a clever performance from the experienced SRH pacer and it would have been even better if not for the mini-assault by Gaikwad. Along with Bhuvneshwar, skipper Cummins (1/29) and Jaydev Unadkat (1/29) were economical as well.
Shivam Dube continues to impress
Shivam Dube continued to enhance his spin hitter’s reputation as he rescued Chennai Super Kings from an embarrassment. It was interesting to note that SRH skipper Pat Cummins fed Dube with spinners, despite the southpaw being known for his hitting prowess versus spin.
The southpaw walked in after a sluggish start, but took on the attack immediately, top-scoring for CSK with 45 off 24 with four sixes and two boundaries. Dube hammered Shahbaz Ahmed and then Mayank Markande before Cummins brought in Jaydev Unadkat and himself into the attack. However, Dube didn’t spare T Natarajan in the 12th over, scoring 15 off it before being sent packing by Cummins.
Abhishek Sharma shines at the top again
The action for Abhishek Sharma started in the very first over of the game after Cummins asked him to open the bowling. Though Abhishek bowled just one over in the game, he did well to concede just seven off it to give SRH a disciplined start with the ball. He was lively on the field as always, but made sure to leave an impact once again with the bat.
With opening partner Travis Head not at his fluent best in the first couple of overs of the chase, Abhishek took the responsibility and unleashed his array of strokes. The southpaw cracked four sixes and three boundaries in his stay of 37 runs off just 12 balls. The SRH opener has been in sublime form, scoring 161 in four games at an average of 40.25.
SRH with their fastest 50 in IPL history
Sunrisers Hyderabad continued their no-holds-barred approach with the bat as they set yet another record. SRH, who hold the record for the highest team total in IPL history (277), recorded their fastest 50 in the tournament’s history. Courtesy of a blistering start by Abhishek and Head, SRH crossed the 50-run mark in just 21 deliveries (3.3 overs). Mukesh Choudhary and Deepak Chahar faced the brunt of a quick hammering by the SRH openers with the former, with the former conceding 27 runs in his first over, after coming on as an impact player.
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