Punjab prevails over Hyderabad
Punjab Kings held its nerve to prevail over Sunrisers Hyderabad by five runs in the IPL here on Saturday.
Needing 17 runs of the final over, Punjab pacer Nathan Ellis conceded 11 runs to bowl his team to a thrilling win. The win keeps Punjab’s hopes of making it to the play-offs alive, while Hyderabad continues to languish at the bottom of the table with just a solitary victory from nine matches.
Set to chase a modest 126, Hyderabad batsmen made a heavy weather of the target in the face of disciplined bowling from Punjab pacers Mohammed Shami and Arshdeep Singh. David Warner’s poor form continued as he was dismissed for just two, while captain Kane Williamson too fell cheaply for just one. Jason Holder’s gritty unbeaten knock of 47 went in vain.
Earlier, West Indian Holder’s impressive spell of three wickets for 19 runs helped Hyderabad restrict Punjab to 125 for seven.
Sent in to bat, Punjab batsmen struggled to get going on a slow wicket and failed to stitch any big partnership, the highest being the 30-run stand between Chris Gayle and Aiden Markram, who top-scored with a 32-ball 27, for the third wicket.
Captain KL Rahul had scored 49 in the previous match but got dismissed early this time as he fell to Holder’s first ball for a run-a-ball 21 in the fifth over.
The other opener Mayank Agarwal (5), who had scored 67 against Rajasthan Royals, was out four balls later as he sliced a Holder delivery to Kane Williamson at mid-off.
Punjab was 29 for two after powerplay and could have been three wickets down the next over but Warner dropped Markram off Khaleel Ahmed. The Mohali-based side was 55 for two at halfway mark.
Gayle shunned playing his trademark big-hitting shots but got dismissed for 14 off 17 balls off the bowling of Rashid Khan.
Brief scores: Punjab Kings 125/7 in 20 overs (A Markram 27, J Holder 3/19) bt Sunrisers Hyderabad 120/7 in 20 overs (J Holder 47*, R Bishnoi 3/24)