IPL Final 2016: SRH vs RCB, IPL 2016 Results and Match Highlights

IPL 9 has been an engrossing season of cricket and the Sunrisers Hyderabad took on the Royal Challengers Bangalore to decide who took the much-coveted trophy home. Royal Challengers Bangalore had booked their place in the final with a win over the Gujarat Lions in the Qualifier 1, whereas the Sunrisers Hyderabad way to the final has been anything but easy.

Watch the highlights of the game here.

Sunrisers were pitted against the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Eliminator, where they emerged victorious and booked their place in the Qualifier 2 against the Gujarat Lions. A brilliant David Warner innings saw the Sunrisers get the better of the Lions and book their place in the final.

The M.Chinnaswamy Stadium was filled to the brim as the home team Royal Challengers Bangalore took on the Sunrisers Hyderabad with the both teams chasing their maiden IPL title and their captains being in superb form, a great match awaited the cricket fans all over the world.

Sunrisers Hyderabad won the toss and choose to bat first.

Playing 11

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli (C), AB de Villiers, Lokesh Rahul (wk), Shane Watson, Sachin Baby, Stuart Binny, Chris Jordan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Iqbal Abdullah, Sreenath Aravind.

Sunriser Hyderabad: Shikhar Dhawan, David Warner (C), Moises Henriques, Yuvraj Singh, Deepak Hooda, Ben Cutting, Naman Ojha, Bipul Sharma, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Barinder Sran, Mustafizur Rahman.

Warner at it again

David Warner continued from where he left off against the Gujarat Lions. With Dhawan providing support from the other end David Warner took it upon himself to take the attack to the Royal Challengers bowlers.

After a cautious start, where both the batsman took their time to get their eye in the first two overs, David Warner broke the shackles by hitting Aravind for two back to back boundaries of the last two balls of the third over. Dhawan provided able support from the other end hitting the odd boundary and rotating the strike.

Warner continued with his carnage and this time, it was Watson who faced his wrath. Watson has been the most successful bowler for RCB this season but Warner was in no mood of showing respect has he took his mate from Australia apart hitting two sixes and a boundary and taking 19 runs of his over. The last over of the powerplay too went for plenty and the Sunrisers were 59/0 at the end of their first 6 overs.

Yuvi and Warner vs the RCB bowlers

Yuzvendra Chahal has been the pick of the bowlers for RCB this season and the leggie dismissed Dhawan first over post the powerplay and looked to have applied the much need brake on the run flowing but Warner wasn’t finished just yet.

Having just lost his opening partner RCB would have hoped Warner to be a bit cautious but the Aussie continued to churn out the boundaries. Warner took 13 runs of Chahal’s second over hitting two fours and also bringing up his fifty in the process. Another fifty for the Australian Magician this season.

Henriques fell prey to Chris Jordan trying to emulate the heroics of his captain but was caught by Chahal at mid-wicket. But nothing seems to deter the SRH batsmen today. Yuvraj Singh joined in the party and Jordan who had provided the breakthrough for RCB was taken to cleaners by Yuvraj who flicked him twice off his legs, once for a four and then for a six.

Things were looking bleak for RCB with Warner and Yuvi batting but the local boy Sreenath Aarvind provided RCB with the much need wicket of David Warner. Having been hit for a four the previous ball Aarvind showed nerves of steel and didn’t get overwhelmed by the occasion, and Warner was caught at short third-man by Iqbal Abdullah has the whole of Chinnaswamy erupted to celebrate the wicket of the Sunrisers captain.

Yuvraj Singh looked like a possessed man in the middle, any team would have clawed back into their shells after the loss of someone like Warner but not SRH and certainly not Yuvraj. Playing against his former employers Yuvraj took the responsibility upon himself has dispatched Chahal for a huge six over Long-On and followed it up with a boundary through the covers taking 13 runs of the over, the very next after Warner’s wicket.

The Cutting edge to the Sunrisers innings

Sreenath Aarvind turned saviour for RCB again. He already minimized the damage by sending Warner back and after being hit for a four first ball, Aarvind got the wicket of Hooda of the last ball of his over.

Back to back wickets for RCB as Yuvraj too is caught at covers by Watson of the first ball of Jordan’s over and there was a sense of calm in the RCB camp with both Yuvi and Warner back in the hut for SRH. Royal Challenger bowlers were slowly making a comeback into this game and Naman Ojha was run-out by Watson following mix up between him and Ben Cutting.

Cutting took it upon himself to power the Sunrisers home as he slogged Watson away for six and a boundary and the hopes of SRH fans were pinned on this Aussie to power them to 190 plus which is considered par on a batting friendly Chinnaswamy pitch. The Aussie didn’t disappoint. Cutting took 24 runs of the last over of the innings of Watson, hitting 3 sixes with one of them landing outside the stadium travelling 117 meters. Cutting scored 39 of 15 balls and SRH ended with 208/7. RCB had to chase down 209 to win the final.

Gayle storm hits the Chinnaswamy.

With 209 to chase you have to be on the 5th gear from the very start and RCB was banking on Christopher Henry Gayle to provide them the start and he obliged. Gayle took the attack to Barinder Sran, hit him for six in his first over and demolished the bowler in his second, hitting two sixes and a four, scoring 16 runs of the 4th over.

Gayle continued his onslaught against Cutting, he dispatched the Aussie for a six over third-man and followed it up with a boundary. While Virat Kohli played the anchor’s role, Gayle went berserk at the other end.

Mustafizur “The Fizz” Rahman, had been the go to bowler for SRH and Warner handed him the ball for the last over of the powerplay. The Fizz didn’t let his captain down and applied the brakes on the run flow, giving away only 4 runs. RCB too ended with 59/0 after the end of the powerplay.

Sunrisers bowlers halts Gayle and Kohli show midway

Gayle brought up his fifty hitting Henriques for a six first ball and it seemed the big man from the Caribbean had decided to deal only in sixes. Be it Cutting or Henriques, Gayle were dispatching them away for sixes. The 9th over from Henriques went for 21 runs which also saw Virat Kohli mistime a lofted shot but luckily for the RCB captain the ball didn’t carry to Long-off and he got four runs.

Kohli had been subdued at the other end, as he watched Gayle take the attack to Sunrisers, but atlast decided to join the party and welcomed the much feared Mustafizur back into the attack with a boundary and a six. Kohli and Gayle made sure the required run rate did not go out of their reach and now both of them were slowly bringing it down with their power hitting.

Kohli got lucky once again. A half-chance as another mistimed shot from the RCB captain carried to short third-man, but just beyond the reach of Mustafizur stationed there. Cutting got the wicket he deserved of the very next ball as Gayle was caught at third-man by Bipul Sharma. A much needed wicket for SRH, they at last managed to break the Kohli-Gayle partnership.

After Gayle’s dismissal, the onus was on Kohli to guide the Royal Challengers towards 209 and the RCB captain provided no respite for the SRH bowlers and kept hitting boundaries to keep the required run rate under check. Kohli reached yet another half-century in IPL 9 with a six over cover of Sran.

Barinder Sran has been taken to the cleaners this match by Gayle and Kohli but the pacer from Punjab bowled Kohli out and with the both the set batsmen out, an opportunity presented itself before SRH to make their way back into the match and they grasped it with both hands and AB de Villiers was next to go back to the dugout as he skied a Bipul Sharma delivery and Henriques completed the formalities by taking the catch. With Gayle, Kohli and de Villiers out, the tide of the game was slowly shifting towards Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Sunrisers bowlers win the IPL for them

51 were required of the last 5 overs and with Rahul and Watson at the crease and 7 wickets in hand, cricketing sense says it would have been an easy task for RCB but then 4 of the last 5 overs were to be bowled by Mustafizur and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar who have been brilliant at the death so it would be foolish to write the Sunrisers off completely.

Cutting is “the man” for SRH today. After powering them to 200 plus, Cutting picked up Gayle and then Rahul in the 16th over silencing the Chinnaswamy crowd. You could almost hear a pin drop at the Chinnaswamy round about now. The required run rate almost reached 12 with just 4 overs to bowl, the pressure was on RCB and on Watson to deliver.

Mustafizur piled on the agony on RCB and the danger man Watson on whom the Bangalore fans had their hopes pinned on perished trying to club “The Fizz” away. With hopes running out in the RCB camp, Binny renewed their hopes as he hit Mustafizur for a six first ball. The chase was still on. RCB are somehow managing to stay in the game and with two overs to go they required 30 to win the game.

Stuart Binny was run out and now it was definitely SRH’s match to lose. RCB still managed to stay alive in the final as Jordan was dropped at cover by Barinder Sran and Sachin Baby lofted Mustafizur for a six of the last ball of the penultimate over,18 runs were required off the last over. Chinnaswamy hopes were still alive.

A final fitting of a season which has been nothing less than a roller coaster ride. That last over which went for 24 runs and Ben Cuttings brilliant innings came back to haunt RCB as they fell 8 runs short of the title. Chinnaswamy was stunned into silence as David Warner and his bunch players celebrated their maiden IPL title. The orange army owe it to their bowlers, they have won the IPL for Sunrisers, they certainly did.

Hyderabad certainly deserved the IPL but great sympathy certainly goes out to Virat Kohli. The man single handedly took RCB all the way to the final and he deserved to lift the trophy.

Match Result

SRH : 208/7 Warner 69 (38) Cutting 39 (15) Aarvind 2/30 Jordan 3/45

RCB : 200/7 Gayle 76 (38) Kohli 54 (35) Cutting 2/35 Bipul Sharma 1/17

SRH won by 8 runs

Man of the Match: Ben Cutting

Most Valuable Player: Virat Kohli