 "Sunrisers Hyderabad qualify for IPL 2024 playoffs after match against Gujarat Titans ends in washout")
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) became the third team to qualify for the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs after their home game against Gujarat Titans (GT) was washed out without a ball bowled on Thursday.
A thunderstorm had lashed Hyderabad on Thursday afternoon, resulting in a wet outfield at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in the Uppal area of the Telangana capital. The toss, as a result, was delayed due to a wet outfield, and would ultimately not take place as rain returned later in the evening after a brief retreat and only intensified as time wore on.
Play was eventually called off at 10.10 pm local time, 20 minutes before the deadline for a five-overs-a-side contest was to end.
SRH, as a result, move to the third spot on the IPL 2024 table with 15 points from 13 outings, effectively ensuring they cannot fall out of the top four even if they lose their final league match of the season — against Punjab Kings on Sunday.
The 2016 champions will finish fourth if they lose that match and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) ends up beating Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Saturday’s blockbuster clash at the Chinnaswamy.
GT, meanwhile, finished the season with 12 points from 14 matches with a Net Run Rate of -1.063 — the worst of the season so far. After reaching consecutive finals under Hardik Pandya’s leadership, including the title on debut in 2022, the Titans have suffered a reversal of fortunes in Shubman Gill’s maiden season in charge.
And unless Lucknow Super Giants suffer a massive defeat against Mumbai Indians in their final league outing on Friday that takes their NRR even further behind that of GT, Gill and Co are likely to finish at the eighth spot. That is unless PBKS defeat SRH on Sunday, in which case the Titans will slip to ninth as the Kings have a better NRR (-0.347).
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