 "IPL 2024: Abhishek's explosive start, Markram's half-century and other top moments from SRH's victory over CSK")
Both Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) appear just as formidable on home turf as they are vulnerable away from it, having won two and lost as many this season with both of their victories taking place in front of their home fans.
In Friday’s showdown in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) between the two southern rivals, it was 2016 champions SRH who reigned supreme. Not only did the ‘Orange Army’ restrict CSK to a modest 165/5 after skipper Pat Cummins opted to field but they appeared to have batted on an entirely different surface as they chased the target down with six wickets and nearly two overs to spare.
Photos | SRH hand CSK a six-wicket defeat, collect 2nd win of IPL 2024
Barring a seven-wicket thumping at the hands of the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad, it has been a positive start to the season for the Sunrisers. They’ve beaten five-time champions CSK and Mumbai Indians, posting a record total of 277/3 against the latter.
SRH would have had three wins in four outings had it not been for a heroic final over from Harshit Rana that resulted in a four-run loss at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders.
The Ruturaj Gaikwad-led CSK, meanwhile, have been pushed to the back-foot, suffering back-to-back defeats away from home after beginning their title defence with consecutive wins at Chepauk, including a 63-run mauling of GT — the team they had defeated in thrilling fashion in last year’s final to win the tournament for a fifth time.
Looking back at the events of the 18th match of the season, we bring to you some of the top moments from the game:
Cummins denies Dube a fifty, completes a half-century
Impact Shorts
More ShortsWhile CSK would finish with a below-par total on what was a surface much slower than the one on which SRH had plundered 277 runs against MI last week, Shivam Dube’s quickfire 45 off 24 deliveries had given the Super Kings hope of mounting a total in excess of 180 that would’ve been real competitive and given their bowlers a lot more cushion.
After starting with a couple of dots, Dube would smack a six and a four off consecutive deliveries from left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed before meting out a similar treatment to wrist-spinner Mayank Markande the following over, racing to 25 off just 10 deliveries as CSK raced to 80/2 at the end of the ninth over.
Dube would storm into the 40s with back-to-back sixes off pacer T Natarajan, but perished just when he was starting to set his sights on his second half-century of the season as he redirected a slower bouncer from Cummins straight to Bhuvneshwar Kumar at backward point, giving the SRH captain his 50th IPL wicket in the process.
Jadeja-Bhuvneshwar ‘Obstructing the field’ incident
His dismissal of Dube, which led to a slowdown of sorts for Chennai as they could manage 45 runs in their last six overs, wasn’t the only time Cummins was involved in a standout moment in Friday’s encounter. The Australian pacer had also decided against appealing for ‘Obstructing the field’ against Ravindra Jadeja after the senior CSK all-rounder had come in the way of a throw from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was targeting the stumps at the striker’s end, in the 18th over.
Obstructing or not? 🤔
— JioHotstar Reality (@HotstarReality) April 5, 2024
Skipper Pat Cummins opts not to appeal 👏👏#SRHvCSK #IPLonJioCinema #TATAIPL pic.twitter.com/l85UXQEa4S
Jadeja had ended up directing the ball towards Bhuvi after getting an inside deflection onto his pad off a yorker, and attempted to steal a quick single, only to abort after noticing Bhuvneshwar scoop up the ball in an instant. He would then end up getting hit on his lower back — right in front of the stumps — after turning around and attempting to dash towards the popping crease.
Cummins had every right to appeal for what is one of cricket’s unique dismissals, but ultimately decided against it, apparently in the spirit of sportsmanship as it didn’t appear a deliberate act on Jadeja’s part. Some, including former India batter Mohammad Kaif, however, speculate that it might have been a deliberate ploy on the Aussie’s part to ensure Jadeja, who wasn’t able to accelerate the way his team would’ve hoped, remained at the crease till the end of the innings instead of MS Dhoni, who was due to walk in next.
Abhishek’s explosive start
SRH could’ve been in trouble early in their chase after Travis Head nicked the ball towards the slips off Deepak Chahar’s bowling in the very first over of SRH’s chase, only for Moeen Ali to spill the chance. Head has carved quite the reputation for himself when it comes to punishing the opposition for missed opportunities, and would add 31 runs to the Sunrisers total in 24 deliveries.
The real difference between the two sides, however, was the manner in which Head’s opening partner Abhishek Sharma batted during the powerplay. The Punjab all-rounder has been enjoying a terrific run so far this season and managed to carry his red-hot form over to Friday’s fixture as he blasted 37 off just 12 deliveries during the powerplay.
After collecting a single in his first two deliveries, Abhishek shifted gears in the second over as he smashed pacer Mukesh Choudhary, who was making his first appearance of the season for 27 runs — two fours and as many sixes along with a no-ball. He would then hammer Deepak Chahar for a six and a four before getting dismissed by the Rajasthan seamer after slicing the ball straight to Ravindra Jadeja at backward point.
Thanks to his fireworks, the Sunrisers would go past the fifty mark inside four overs and end up with 78 on the board at the end of the powerplay, laying the foundation for the successful chase as a result.
Markram collects his first fifty of the season
Markram had been removed from captaincy ahead of the 17th season despite leading the franchise to back-to-back titles in SA20, with the Sunrisers naming Australian captain Pat Cummins as their new leader. One wondered what the outcome of this sudden change in leadership would be when it came to the South African’s form with the bat, whether he would bat more freely after being relieved of the burden of captaincy or not.
Though he wasn’t anywhere near as explosive as Abhishek in the powerplay, Markram played a responsible innings to ensure that the Sunrisers remained in the hunt and that the asking rate was well within their grasp even if the boundaries had started to dry up after the powerplay.
Markram collected four fours and a six en route to his first half-century of the season, before getting trapped off Moeen’s bowling while attempting to play a needless reverse sweep. Though he couldn’t finish the game for the Sunrisers, his knock ensured the ‘Orange Army’ got past the finish line in a canter.
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