Bowling breakthroughs for Sunrisers Hyderabad and death-overs calm from Delhi Capitals delivered edge-of-the-seat thrillers on Saturday, lifting the tempo of the Indian Premier League.
Hyderabad edged past Chennai Super Kings by 10 runs, uncovering depth in their bowling resources as a group of unheralded names dismantled what appeared a manageable chase for the five-time champions.
Chasing 195, Chennai were well placed at the halfway stage with 84 needed off 60 balls and seven wickets in hand, but Hyderabad’s young bowlers seized control.
Eshan Malinga (3-29) led the charge, backed by Nitish Kumar Reddy (2-31), Shivang Kumar (1-18) and Sakib Hussain (1-32), all conceding at eight runs or fewer in an over.
“Lovely when you have a bunch of young bowlers coming up with their plans,” Hyderabad captain Ishan Kishan said at the post-match presentation.
“Looking at them getting better day by day at training, you have to trust them.”
Bowlers’ effort eclipsed half-centuries from Abhishek Sharma (15-ball fifty) and Heinrich Klaasen (33-ball fifty), underlining Hyderabad’s growing reliance on young bowling talent, while Australia quick Pat Cummins remains unavailable.
DELHI’S LATE FLOURISH
Delhi leaned on experience rather than novelty, director of cricket Venugopal Rao said, explaining how they survived a powerplay collapse to pull off a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a tense chase of 176.
Reduced to 18-3, Delhi were steadied by a composed partnership between KL Rahul and Tristan Stubbs, before David Miller closed the game with a late flourish.
Miller struck two sixes and a four in the final over, sealing the chase and finishing what had slipped away in Delhi’s earlier loss to Gujarat Titans.
“When we lost back against Gujarat, we felt bad. So one game at a time. This tournament is all about momentum and today Miller finished it,” Rao told reporters.
“The only thing we do is to give confidence to bat freely. Win game, don’t wait for others to win it.”
Fourth-placed Hyderabad will next host fifth-placed Delhi on Tuesday, with the two sides level on six points.
Source: Khaleej Times