That’s it—the Sunrisers Hyderabad have sealed their place in this year’s play-off as they beat the Gujarat Lions by 8 wickets. After a brilliant start for the Lions, who were batting first, they lost their way and bundled out for 154.
Given that, at one point, they were batting at 111 for no loss, this was a very bad implosion on their behalf. In response, the Sunrisers batted with a cool head and won the game, thanks to some good batting display from David Warner and Vijay Shankar.
Here are 5 memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes:
#1 Fine opening from Gujarat
What a start it was from the Lions! Their openers roared like the name suggests, leaving the Sunrisers’ bowlers baffled and out of their senses. The pale complexions of Sunrisers’ bowlers was a sight to behold for the Lions’ fans as they were smacked all around the park by Dwayne Smith and Ishan Kishan.
It was the Indian who started off with blaze and gave his team the start that they needed. Smith soon joined the party and the duo put up a stunning partnership of 111 in just 65 balls. While Ishan scored 61 from just 40 balls, the West Indian perfectly complemented him with an innings of 54 runs from just 33 balls.
#2 Rashid Khan leads comeback
After the start that the Gujarat openers provided for their team, it felt like they would cross the mark of the highest runs scored (230) in this year’s IPL.
However, Afghan sensation, Rashid Khan, made a brilliant comeback to halt the progress of the Lions. He became the ringmaster to tame the Lions and he did it with absolute dominance. At first, he took the wicket of Dwayne Smith and then followed it up with the wickets of Dinesh Karthik and Aaron Finch, finishing with numbers of 34 for 3 in his 4 overs.
#3 Mohammed Siraj at his destructive best
The good work of Rashid Khan was perfectly complemented by Mohammed Siraj as the pacer absolutely crushed the batting order of the Lions. In his first spell, he was ripped to shreds by the Gujarat openers, but then he made a brilliant comeback to have the last laugh.
In his spell of 4 overs, he took 4 wickets—Ishan Kishan, Suresh Raina, James Faulkner and Pradeep Sangwan—and gave away just 32 runs in the end. This was a comeback of epic proportions since he was dismantled by Dwayne Smith and Ishan Kishan in the initial overs.
#4 David Warner leads from the front
Is there any captain that leads his team from the front as well as David Warner does? The Australian cricketer took the responsibility of his team on his shoulders and led them to a vital win against the Gujarat Lions.
The target might not have been a mammoth one, but it was necessary that the intent from the beginning was a positive one—and David Warner did just that. Hitting 9 boundaries, the Sunrisers’ captain scored an unbeaten 69 from 52 to get his team over the line and seal their place in the play-off of this year’s Indian Premier League.
#5 Shankar special
It is always a wonderful sight to witness an unknown player play well in an IPL game—and tonight was the Vijay Shankar’s day. While David Warner played a fine knock to give his team a nice start, Vijay Shankar played the role of the perfect partner to his captain.
In the 44 balls that he faced, he scored 63 runs and, like his captain, smashed 9 boundaries in the process. However, the best part about his innings was the maturity with which he conducted it while also flaunting his array of shots.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download CricRocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more! 🚀☄️
