South African’s fifty helps Sunrisers Hyderabad to second win

Hyderabad, April 5

Chennai Super Kings fluffed their lines during their batting innings and then were taken to the cleaners by Abhishek Sharma and Aiden Markram who helped Sunrisers Hyderabad clinch a comfortable six-wicket victory against the defending champions in the IPL here today.

SRH’s bowlers were too disciplined while restricting CSK to 165/5 in 20 overs with only 37 being scored off the last five overs.

If 37 off the last five was a poor effort from CSK, young southpaw Abhishek, who is having a great tournament, also scored 37 but off only

12 deliveries, with four sixes, to lay the platform.

“While bowling, we felt it was a slow wicket. So we wanted to take the powerplay on. We had a chance to prepare well before the IPL. We knew it will be slow but not if we take on the bowler,” said Player of the Match Abhishek Sharma.

Aiden Markram then anchored the chase with a 36-ball 50 as SRH knocked off the runs in just 18.1 overs. He stitched a 60-run stand with opener Travis Head (31 off 24 balls) for the second wicket in seven overs after Abhishek pummelled a listless Mukesh Chaudhary, playing his first game, for 27 runs.

The match ended as a contest then and there as CSK lost two away matches on the trot while SRH have now won both their home games.

CSK had a chance first up but Moeen Ali dropped Head off the second delivery bowled by Deepak Chahar.

After that it was mayhem as 23-year-old Abhishek hit two fours and three sixes off Mukesh, a forced selection in the absence of Mustafizur Rahman, who has taken a one-match break to go home and submit his US visa application.

There was no let-up from Abhishek as he also hammered Chahar for a boundary and a six in the third over but his pyrotechnics ended there as his lofted shot was taken well by a diving Ravindra Jadeja.

Head and Markram built on it without taking too many risks, reaching 78/1 after six overs. SRH brought up their 100 runs in the ninth over with Markram hitting a massive six off the bowling of Jadeja in the ninth over.

Head, the impact sub for T Natarajan, was out in the 10th over off Maheesh Theekshana but not before his crucial partnership with Markram. Pressure had eased out by then as SRH needed just 59 runs from the final 10 overs with eight wickets in hand.

Markram completed his first fifty of the season in the 14th over as the CSK bowlers toiled to get the wickets. But the South African batter, who captained SRH last season, got out in the same over bowled by Moeen Ali (2/23).

Brief scores: CSK: 165/5 in 20 overs (Dube 45, Rahane 35, Jadeja 31*; Bhuvneshwar 1/28); SRH: 166/4 in 18.1 overs (Markram 50, Abhishek 37; Moeen 2/23). — PTI

RCB, RR look to end top-order woes

Jaipur: Struggling Royal Challengers Bengaluru and high-flying Rajasthan Royals bizarrely have similar worries to address when they face each other in their IPL here tomorrow.

The eighth place where RCB are currently on the 10-team table is a fair indication of their troubles, but RR’s all-win record so far and the resultant second place do not necessarily mirror their turmoil — an underwhelming top-order is the common factor between them. The RCB top-order comprising skipper Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green and Rajat Patidar have fired either individually or in unison, except star batter Virat Kohli.

RR’s batting has largely revolved around captain Sanju Samson and the highly-improved Riyan Parag and at some point, the duo will require solid support from others.