SUNSTROKE!
Hyderabad smash highest total, maul Mumbai
Hyderabad Blues. That was the story for Mumbai Indians, who left the city battered, bruised and staring down the barrel on the points table after being handed a crushing defeat by Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday night.
The Orange outfit turned in a red hot performance at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium to smash IPL’S highest total of 277 for the loss of just three wickets (surpassing Royal Challengers Bangalore’s 263 for 5 against Pune Warriors at home in 2013) before restricting the Blues to 246 for 5.
Rohit Sharma (26) and Ishan Kishan (34) started the chase in fourth gear, bringing up the team 50 in the third over without being separated, but fell in quick succession. Later, Tilak Varma (64 — 34b, 2x4, 6x6) and Naman Dhir (30) put on 84 for the third wicket as Mumbai reached 141 for 2 at the half-way stage.
After that it was all downhill.
For the hosts, heroes were aplenty. Heinrich Klaasen made a hurricane 80 not out that came off just 34 balls and included four boundaries and seven soaring sixes to lead the batting card. Abhishek Sharma’s 63 off 23 balls (3x4, 7x6), Travis Head’s 62 off 24 (9x4, 3x6) and Aiden Markram’s 28-ball 42 propelled Sun to a scorching score.
Sun was bright right through the innings. Opening the innings, Head was right in the scheme of things. He smashed the first ball he faced, from South African teen Kwena Maphaka to the boundary to make his intent clear. The Australian southpaw was dropped though, while on 5. Hardik, for all
the boisterous boos around the stadium, almost got a wicket on the first ball he bowled, in the second over of the game. If only Tim David had held on to a simple chance, Head would have been gone early. Travis cashed in on the chance, and set heads spinning.
However, Hardik got the breakthrough with the first ball of his second
over, fifth of the innings when Mayank Agarwal tried to pull him but only managed to balloon it to David, who made no mistake this time. Sunrisers 45 for 1.
Soon, they upped the ante and the runs rattled. At the end of the Power Play, Sun’s score read a hot 81 for 1. There was no respite after that too — Abhishek carted three
sixes off leg-spinner Piyush Chawla as 21 runs came off the seventh over of the innings.
After Head departed in the eighth over, Abhishek took over, thumping the hapless Mumbai bowlers to all parts of the ground. He preferred the aerial route as sixes flowed freely from his punishing blade.
Then,
Markram and
Klaasen put on an unbroken stand of 116 for the fourth wicket as the Sunrisers pulled away.
The only highlight of Mumbai’s bowling was a classic Jasprit Bumrah yorker to Klaasen in the 19th over which drew generous applause from the crowd. It was one of the 22 dot balls the visitors managed to send down in 20 overs.