On a flat pitch in Hyderabad, Rajasthan Royals’ decision to bowl first backfired as Ishan Kishan’s sensational 106, Travis Head’s blistering 67 and valuable cameos from Nitish Kumar Reddy and Heinrich Klaasen propelled Sunrisers Hyderabad to an imposing 286/6. The total proved more than enough, as SRH clinched an authoritative 44-run victory in what was a high-scoring encounter.
By the halfway mark, the outcome seemed inevitable. Chasing the highest total in the IPL history was always going to be a monumental task for RR’s relatively inexperienced batting line-up. Despite a valiant fight, the target was simply out of reach.
After losing three early wickets in the Powerplay, RR found hope through a gritty 111-run stand between Sanju Samson (66) and Dhruv Jurel (70). However, the required run rate kept climbing, never quite within their grasp. With the game slipping away, Shimron Hetmyer and Shubham Dubey made the most of their time in the middle at the end.
Simarjeet Singh set the tone early for SRH with two crucial wickets in one over, while Harshal Patel struck at key moments in the middle and at the death. Mohammed Shami and Adam Zampa chipped in with a wicket each to cap off a bowling performance for SRH that did the job.
With the bat, SRH picked up right where they left off last season, sticking to their tried-and-tested slam-bang approach that served them well. Given the opportunity to bat first, Head and Abhishek Sharma provided a blistering start. Abhishek was the early aggressor, with all five of his boundaries coming cleanly off the middle of the bat. Ironically, the one shot he mistimed cost him his wicket — a half-tracker from Maheesh Theekshana that hit the lower part of the bat.
Despite Abhishek’s early departure, the onslaught continued unabated. What followed was sheer carnage as Head and Kishan ripped through the RR bowling attack, smashing 94 runs inside the Powerplay and leaving their opponents stunned.
Fazalhaq Farooqi struggled to find his rhythm in his opening spell, while Theekshana managed to get some grip with his off-breaks but lacked consistency. Erring either too short or too full, he made it easy for the batters to hit through the line and pierce the off-side. By the end of the Powerplay, SRH had already set the tone for another dominant performance.
They launched a relentless assault on the RR bowlers. Kishan looked to be in complete control from the outset, with precise footwork against both pace and spin. He picked up lengths early and carefully chose his scoring areas. While Head played a few risky shots, Kishan was near flawless. Inside-out drives, slogs, pulls, switch hits — he played all of them.
The two shots he hammered over covers against Jofra Archer stood out as something special. He peppered the field all around the ground, making life miserable for the bowlers. It was clear that the 26-year-old came in with a set plan, and he executed it to perfection, bringing up his maiden IPL century in style.
Even after Head departed, Kishan kept his foot firmly on the pedal, and the batters who followed continued the carnage. Reddy smashed a quickfire 30 off just 15 balls, while Klaasen blazed his way to 34 off 14 deliveries at a staggering strike rate of 242.86. On a surface tailor-made for batting, the SRH batters thoroughly enjoyed their time in the middle.
Archer had a forgettable night, conceding 76 runs in his four-over spell without taking a wicket. Tushar Deshpande was the best among all RR bowlers with three wickets. The fielders provided little support to the bowlers, with numerous misfields and dropped catches.