SRH vs KXIP: Bhuvneshwar Kumar's 5-for inspires Sunrisers Hyderabad to thrilling win
Hyderabad: Bhuvneshwar Kumar took an amazing five-wicket haul, as Sunrisers Hyderabad completed a thrilling five-run victory over Kings XI Punjab, at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad, on Monday.
SRH came out to bowl in the second innings, with a modest total of 159 to defend, and Bhuvi took the initiative from the very first ball of the innings, trapping Hashim Amla lbw with an in-swinging delivery.
The SRH bowler also got danger man Eoin Morgan in the third over of the game, setting the pace for the match.
Afghan duo of Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi did the damage in the middle overs, as they picked up three wickets between themselves; these were crucial wickets though, as KXIP's bigg hitters like Amla, Maxwell, Morgan, David Miller, and Wriddhiman Saha were all sent back to the pavillion before the 10-over mark.
However, one man that stood in SRH's way was opener Manan Vohra. The 23-year-old smashed 95 runs from 50 balls, to give his team a fighting chance till the end of the match.
While wickets kept tumbling from one end, Vohra kept playing the big shots from the other, bringing KXIP closer to their target of 160.
David Warner had a big decision to make on the 18-over mark. Should he preserve his in-form strike bowler Bhuvi for the last over? Or should he give the Team India paceman the 19th over, and see if he can finish the game? The SRH captain went for the latter option.
This decision worked wonderfully well for SRH, as Bhuvi managed to get the all-important wicket of Manan Vohra with a toe-crushing yorker.
The job however, was still not done.
KXIP may have been nine wickets down, but they were still within touching distance of their total, and it needed a yorker aimed at the base of Ishant sharma's off stump, for Sidharth Kaul to finish off the proceedings, and get the victory for SRH.
Earlier, David Warner played a captain's knock of 70 (not out) from 54 balls, to guide thehome side to a challenging total.
Scorecard:
SRH: 159-6 from 20 overs (David Warner: 70*, Naman Ojha: 34; Mohit Sharma: 2-25, Axar Patel: 2-33)
KXIP: 154 all out from 19.4 overs (Manan Vohra: 95, Eoin Morgan: 13; Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 5-19, Rashid Khan 2-42)
Sunrisers Hyderabad defeat Kings XI Punjab by 5 runs.
Man of the Match: Bhuvneshwar Kumar
KXIP: 154 all out from 19.4 overs
WICKET! Sidharth Kaul finishes it off for SRH! His yorker was dead-accurate, as it went on to hit the base of the off-stump. Ishant Sharma had no chance there. That wicket earns SRH a nervy 5-run victory.
Manan Vohra played his heart out today. He will be disappointed to not see his side go over the finish line.
KXIP: 145-9 from 18.3 overs
WICKET! Brillaint from Bhuvi. Sends in a toe-crushing yorker, and traps the danger man Vohra in front of the stumps. There was not question about that.
SRH: 144-8 from 18.1 overs
WICKET! Bhuvi gets another one! Cariappa tried the fancuy stuff, but Bhuvi hits the stumps.
SRH: 127-7 from 16.2 overs
WICKET! Mohit Sharma goes for the big slog on the off side, but only manages to lob it into Shikhar Dhawan's hands. More importantly for KXIP, Vohra crosses over to take strike.
SRH: 82-6 from 14 overs
WICKET! The bowling change has done the trick. Axar drives hard at Moises Henriques' delivery but ends up giving a simple catch to Shikhar Dhawan.
SRH: 62-5 from 10 overs
WICKET! Rashid Khan is getting in on the act. Completely deceives both David Miller and Wriddhiman Saha with fast straighter wrong ones, to take two quick wickets.
SRH: 57-3 from 8.1 overs
WICKET! Mohammad Nabi gets another wicket. And what a big wicket this is. eoin Morgan completely missed the line and the turn on that ball, as it went on to crash into his stumps.
SRH: 32-2 from 5 overs
SRH have the start that they wanted. Bhuvi has removed two danger men – Hashim Amla and Glenn Maxwell. However, Eoin Morgan is getting in on the act, as he smashes Mohammad Nabi on the leg side.
SRH: 16-2 from 2.5 overs
WICKET! And he gets another one! Bhuvneshwar Kumar gets the big wicket of Glenn 'Big show' Maxwell, who edged the ball high into the night sky, as David Warner took a smart catch.
SRH: 6-1 from 1 over
WICKET! Brilliant start by SRH! Bhuvneshwar Kumar gets a wicke with the very first ball of the KXIP innigns. Starts with an in-swinger, and traps Hashim Amla lbw in front of the stumps.
SRH: 159-6 from 20 overs
A captain's innings by David Warner. While wickets fell around him, Warner stayed at the crease, and led SRH to a respectable total.
SRH: 108-3 from 15 overs
Warner is playing a sensible knock here. Brings up the 50-run partnership with Naman Ojha, whith a well-guided slash off a full length delivery.
SRH: 50-3 from 9.2 overs
WICKET! The strategic timeout has certainly worked well for XKIP. Axar Patel gets Moises Henriques stumped, as the latter danced down the track. He then went on to deceive Yuvraj Singh with a straight delivery, as the southpaw nicked it to keeper Saha.
SRH: 25-1 from 5 overs
Shikhar Dhawan goes for the hook after a slow start. However, he only managed to glove the climbing Mohit delivery, as Wriddhiman Saha took a good catch behind the wicket.
Teams:
Kings XI Punjab: Manan Vohra, Hashim Amla, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Eoin Morgan, David Miller, Glenn Maxwell (c), Axar Patel, Mohit Sharma, KC Cariappa, Ishant Sharma, Sandeep Sharma.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Yuvraj Singh, Deepak Hooda, Mohammad Nabi, Naman Ojha (wk), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan, Barinder Sran, Siddarth Kaul.
Toss:
KXIP have won the toss, and have decided to put SRH in to bat first.
Preview: Australians David Warner and Glenn Maxwell have a lot riding on the clash between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab, after suffering losses in their recent games.
Defending champions Hyderabad, who had started the tournament off on a high, suddenly find themselves in a bit of a slump, having lost teir last two matches against Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders.
Meanwhile, Kings XI Punjab have also suffered losses recently, with Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils registering victory against them.
Both the sides have slipped down the table as well, with one-time table toppers Hyderabad trying to keep themselves in the top four, with Kings XI just one sopt behind them.
