Sunrisers Hyderabad’s epic victory over Mumbai Indians will go down as one of the greatest matches ever seen in the history of the IPL. Records tumbled down like a house of cards and nothing seemed too impossible to achieve on Wednesday at the Uppal stadium.
Sunrisers came out of its slump with a bang and posted the IPL’s highest ever total of 277. After the title triumph in 2016 under the captaincy of David Warner, the fortunes of SRH had been rapidly spiraling downwards. This victory over the Mumbai outfit should give the team’s confidence a big boost.
The pitch and weather conditions were a batsman’s paradise and a bowler’s nightmare. But what started the mayhem was a decision that went wrong. Hardik Pandya the skipper of Mumbai Indians has been facing a lot of flak of late and he made another blunder by asking the home team to bat first.
Rohit’s dismissal was a blow
But another point that made a big difference was the early dismissal of Rohit Sharma by SRH captain Pat Cummins. After scoring 26, Rohit departed when Mumbai Indians’ total was at 66. Had he lasted a little longer and scored 50 odd runs then SRH would have lost. The winning margin was only 31 runs.
Batters on a rampage
When the match began, opener Travis Head blasted his way to a powerful 62 off only 24 balls with the help of nine 4s and three 6s. It was as if he had packed dynamite in his bat. Nothing that the MI bowlers tried worked. The Aussie hit every ball hard and clean without the semblance of a chance.
The other batter who went on a similar rampage was Abhishek Sharma. His 63 off 23 balls contained three 4s and seven 6s. He was eventually adjudged Player of the Match. This short and slim batter from Amritsar was known as a lower order batter but he proved that he can bat anywhere in the order.
Aiden Markram (42 not out from 28 balls) was no less devastating but it was Heinrich Klaasen who hammered the final nail firmly into the coffin. The way he tore the bowling to shreds was awe inspiring. This wicket keeper cum batsman who hails from Pretoria in South Africa rarely fails. Sunrisers picked the right man for the job when they selected Klaasen.
Klaasen is like Dhoni
According to South Africa’s coach Shukri Conrad, the 32-year-old Klaasen is similar to M S Dhoni in many ways. He can stay calm in high pressure situations and continue his demolition work with a high level of precision and timing. He can seize the initiative from the bowler and dominate the proceedings. Against Mumbai Indians, Klaasen showed that the coach’s assessment was perfect in every way.
Long before SRH had reached its record breaking 277 for three in 20 overs, Hardik Pandya must have realised his blunder. He tried out all his resources to stop the flow of runs but no bowler could succeed. Only Jasprit Bumrah gave away 9 per over but all the rest gave more than 10 per over.
But it goes to the credit of Mumbai Indians that they fought back even when faced with a mammoth task. Hyderabadis had something to cheer about in this innings too. Hyderabad lad Tilak Varma top scored for Mumbai with 64 off 34 balls with 2 fours and six 6s. A total of twenty 6s were hit by the Mumbai batters as they put up a spirited chase before falling short by 31 runs.
Yeh Dil Maange More
So captain Cummins and his men have brought back the smiles on the faces of Hyderabad’s fans but now they must strive to keep up this level of performance in the remaining matches. Cummins described this match as an “insane” contest. But the Hyderabad team’s fans would probably want more such insanity. They would say: Yeh Dil Maange More.
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