Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) began their campaign in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on a winning note after beating the Rajasthan Royals by nine wickets.
Moreover, it was some tight bowling by Hyderabad bowlers including the likes of Siddarth Kaul and Shakib AL Hasan which restricted the Royals to a below-par score of 125 runs.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Billy Stanlake, and Rashid Khan chipped in with a wicket each.
Chasing the total, Sunrisers were never challenged barring the early loss of the wicket of Wriddhiman Saha
Shikhar Dhawan was in full flow and was well supported by Kane Williamson which ensured SRH chased the target down with utmost ease in the end.
But, it was skipper Williamson who inflicted the first breakthrough by running out D’Arcy Short. Ajinkya Rahane was joined by Sanju Samson. The latter struck some magnificent shots while Rahane struggled to 13.
Wickets kept falling at regular intervals. Ben Stokes was also dismissed early by Billy Stanlake. They never managed to get the run rate up and struggled to 125 in their allotted 20 overs.
Chasing a relatively below-par total, Hyderabad was in full control of proceedings after the loss of Wriddhiman Saha’s wicket. The wicket-keeper batsman was elevated to the opening slot but he couldn’t quite make use of the opportunity.
Saha was dismissed by Jaydev Unadkat. From there on it was a good partnership between Kane Williamson and Shikhar Dhawan which never really allowed Rajasthan to crawl their way back into the game.
Dhawan struck some exceptional shots en route to his knock of in balls while Williamson remained unbeaten on 36. Dhawan’s innings was studded with 12 fours and a hit over the fence.
It was some innings and the southpaw will be surely looking to carry on his rich vein of form through the tournament.
Here is what winning Kane Williamson said at the post-match presentation:
“No doubt we missed Davey (Warner). He’s been a fantastic player for a lot of years. Good to see everyone stepping up. Guys were great on the field and all did their roles well. It was nice to see people step up well with both bat and ball,” Williamson said.
All the bowlers certainly played their part. We got wickets at key times, but it was important we fielded well. We took some really good catches. A team effort. Yes, there are small areas we can still improve.
“(On bowling a lot of short balls) It wasn’t a planned thing, the surface was such that the short ball was coming on nicely. There was something for the pacers and the spinners while the batsmen were also to score runs. A fair surface actually,” he stated.
“(On Dhawan’s innings) I had the best seat in the house, he hit it really well. The intent was great from ball one. Saha also showed intent from the start. Hopefully, we can keep it up in the coming games as well,” Williamson concludes.
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