Following his side’s win over Mumbai Indians (MI) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Australian opener Travis Head said that he was pleased with how he could score well both on the off-side and on the leg-side of the ground. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) clinched a 31-run win over Mumbai Indians (MI) in the high-scoring Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
Following the match, Travis said in the post-match presentation, “Feeling good, the batting team has done an exceptional job in the last two games, feels good to contribute. It was very enjoyable tonight. We were aggressive in the first game as well, that is one thing we want to do at the top. I am pleased I could target both the off-side and leg-side. Earlier, I would just target the leg side. It is a great blueprint for us moving forward. I was pleased with how things worked out in the powerplay. They (MI) got so much power and experience as well. With 280-odd, I felt we had enough.”
In the match, Sunrisers Hyderabad were put to the test first by the Mumbai Indians. MI got Mayank Agarwal (11) early. But fiery knocks came from Travis Head (62 in 24 balls, with nine fours and three sixes), Abhishek Sharma (63 in 23 balls with three fours and seven sixes) that powered SRH to 148/2 in their 10 overs. Abhishek-Head put on a 68-run partnership for the second wicket.
Following a brief 48-run stand between Abhishek and Aiden Markram (42* in 28 balls, with two fours and a six), Heinrich Klaasen (80* in 34 balls, with four boundaries and seven sixes) formed a 116-run stand in 54 balls to take SRH to 277/3 in their 20 overs, the highest-ever IPL total.
Gerald Coetzee (1/57), skipper Hardik Pandya (1/46) and Piyush Chawla (1/34) took wickets for MI. South African U19 star Kwena Maphanka was hit for 66 runs in his debut IPL game in four overs.
Chasing 278, openers Rohit Sharma (26 in 12 balls, with a four and three sixes) and Ishan Kishan (34 in 13 balls, with two fours and three sixes) gave MI a fine start, racing to 56 in 3.2 overs.
After both openers were dismissed, Naman Dhir (30 in 14 balls, with two fours and two sixes) and Tilak Varma (64 in 34 balls, with two fours and six sixes) formed a 84-run stand, taking MI to 150 in 10.4 when Dhir was dismissed, in an unbelievable counterattack.
Tilak kept fighting for MI along with skipper Hardik Pandya (24 in 20 balls, with a four and six), taking MI to 182/4 in 14.1 overs at the time of Tilak’s dismissal.
In the death overs, Tim David (42* in 22 balls, with two fours and three sixes) battled it out for MI along with Pandya and Romario Shepherd (15* in six balls, with two fours and a six). But MI had been controlled well by SRH bowlers and restricted to a commendable 246/5 in 20 overs, losing by 31 runs.
Skipper Pat Cummins (2/35) and Jaydev Unadkat (2/47) were the top bowlers for SRH. Shahbaz Ahmed also got a wicket.
Abhishek took home the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his fifty.
