IPL 2023: Sunrisers, third time fortunate
With a clinical eight-wicket triumph over Punjab Lords, set up by the bowlers and wrapped up by Rahul Tripathi, Sunrisers Hyderabad are off the blocks this season.
Shikhar, the T20 anchor
Prabhsimran Singh had been Punjab’s master this IPL, bragging a strike rate 176 of every two games. On Sunday night, however, Bhuvneshwar Kumar eliminated him for a brilliant duck with his unique first-ball excusal conveyance. Back of a length, crease up, nipping in the line of the stumps and catching him in front. The home group popped.
In this way, Hyderabad squeezed the maximum out of the seaming conditions in the powerplay. Marco Jansen, playing his most memorable round of the time, utilized the rakish benefit from over the wicket against right handers to trap debutant Matthew Short and guardian hitter Jitesh Sharma in his initial two overs. With Punjab three wickets down in the powerplay, Umran Malik’s express speed (2/32) and Mayank Markande’s best IPL figures (4/15) further nailed the guests down.
In the midst of wickets tumbling from one end, Punjab’s commander and top scorer delivered the most noteworthy score of this IPL. Shikhar Dhawan had batted for all of 20 overs against Rajasthan, changing gears towards the finish of the innings for a 190 or more completion. In Hyderabad, Dhawan played out a comparable gig to bear Punjab to a decent all out as he scored 99 off the group’s 143 runs.
A last-ball six couldn’t take him to a triple figure score yet Dhawan’s holding the post T20 style innings will unquestionably entertain cricket buffs a very long time down the line. Doused in his own sublime self and with the number 11 in at the opposite end, the Punjab captain figured out how to save strike for 28 off the 30 conveyances for the last-wicket stand.
Against Markande, who had kept players re-thinking between his googly and stock ball the entire evening, he shimmied down the track to hammer a limit. Malik’s short and speedy stuff was managed brave pulls for maximums. Not once yet two times in that frame of mind over. Bhuvneshwar’s passing bowling weaknesses would be uncovered with stunning wristwork and timing to gather more fours. T Natarajan would neglect to nail his yorker and Dhawan locked onto the low full throws with most extreme hatred.
The Hyderabad group would pass on aside home establishment faithfulness to absorb and cheer the brightness of the southpaw, who was once their own. “I’m happy that the Hyderabad swarm actually recalls that me,” Dhawan surrendered post-innings.
Tripathi owns SRH
Fuelled by their skipper’s counterattack towards the finish of first innings, Punjab tried Hyderabad from the get-go in the pursuit. Sequential powerplay wicket-taker Arshdeep Singh tidied up Harry Stream, the Britain batsmen persevering through a hot time in the association. In no time, his initial accomplice Mayank Agarwal capitulated to the shackles of a run-a-ball 20 as he trudge cleared directly to long on.
Rahul Tripathi assumed control over issues, indenting up Hyderabad’s initial fifty or more score of this release. Having gained notoriety for his endeavors at the number three opening in the last season, Tripathi pounded his direction through Punjab’s spinners from the two closures in the center overs, clobbering at a strike rate contacting 154.
At the opposite end, Aiden Markaram generally took on a supporting role in an unbeaten 100-run organization prior to giving final details as he brought down Nathan Ellis for three limits in succession before Tripathi stroked another, off Harpreet Brar, to close the game.
