IPL 2018, DD vs SRH: 5 talking points from the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Daredevils

SRH moved a place closer to the semi-finals of the IPL by defeating the Delhi Daredevils by seven wickets. Batting first, the Daredevils posted 163/5 thanks to Prithvi Shaw's 65 from 36 deliveries.

In reply, SRH were off to a strong start thanks to the 76-run stand between Alex Hales and Shikhar Dhawan.

However, the wickets of both openers fell in quick succession and then, Kane Williamson and Manish Pandey added 46 runs for the third wicket from 37 deliveries.

The duo batted more or less patiently as the death overs reached.

In the end, some hard hitting from Yusuf Pathan won the match for the Sunrisers with one ball to spare.

The win took SRH back to the top and Delhi went down to 7th position. Let's take a look at the talking points of the match.

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#5 Prithvi Shaw's continued brilliance

Prithvi Shaw has been in good form for the Daredevils ever since making his IPL debut against Kings XI Punjab.

Today, he showed another brilliant performance with the bat. Delhi were off to a shaky start as they lost Glenn Maxwell early.

Following Maxwell's departure, Shaw took the batting responsibilities on his shoulder and began to smash the SRH bowlers all across the ground.

Shaw stitched a brilliant partnership of 86 from 51 deliveries with Shreyas Iyer for the second wicket and DD's run-rate was booming.

Shaw eventually departed for 65 from 36 deliveries. His dismissal lowered Delhi's run-rate. Had he stayed for another 10-15 deliveries, DD could have posted a higher total.

#4 Avesh Khan concedes big

The 21-year old conceded 47 runs from just three overs

The Delhi bowling was more or less decent except for one bowler- Avesh Khan. Khan's first over saw 10 runs coming from it that included two boundaries.

In his second over, the 21-year old was literally owned by Alex Hales as the Englishman gave him a solid bashing of four sixes. Khan's over yielded 27 runs.

Khan's final over was his worst over of the match as he conceded 10 runs from it. Khan ended with 47 runs from his three overs.

Having been amongst Delhi's wicket-takers in his last couple of games, Khan was extremely disappointing tonight. His three overs were a contributing factor to Delhi's defeat.

#3 The opening stand between Hales and Dhawan

Hales scored 45 from 31 deliveries

One of the key reasons behind Sunrisers' win was the brilliant opening partnership between Hales and Dhawan. The partnership included Hales smashing three sixes off Khan and Dhawan contributing with one in the final powerplay over.

Barring that over, the duo batted more or less calmly. The duo put a lot of pressure on the Delhi bowlers and added 76 runs for the first wicket.

The partnership was broken when Hales was dismissed for his second consecutive 45 of the tournament and it came from 31 deliveries.

SRH will be hoping that Hales and Dhawan produce similar performances in their upcoming games.

#2 Vijay Shankar's drop proves very costly

Vijay Shankar dropped Yusuf Pathan's catch at a very critical stage of the match

The 18th over of the SRH innings saw Manish Pandey getting out in the very first delivery. The over could also have given Liam Plunkett and the Daredevils another wicket. Following Pandey's dismissal, Pathan came in to bat.

In Pathan's second delivery, Plunkett bowled a length delivery in the middle and he pulled it towards deep backward square.

Vijay Shankar came towards the ball and already positioned himself for the catch but the ball dipped in late and he wasn't able to hold on to the ball.

Had Shankar timely positioned himself to catch the ball, then Pathan would have been dismissed for a duck and the outcome of the match could have been different.

#1 Yusuf Pathan's cameo steals the show for SRH

Pathan's cameo won the match for SRH

When Pathan came in to bat, Sunrisers Hyderabad needed 32 runs to win from 17 deliveries. He received a lifeline from Shankar in his second delivery and by the end of the 18th over, he was batting on two runs.

Pathan began the 19th over by smashing a six off Trent Boult. He was given out lbw in the next ball but thanks to Williamson's decision in telling him to take the review, Pathan was saved as the ball was pitching outside leg stump.

Pathan smashed a boundary in the third ball of the over. By the end of the 19th over, Pathan was batting on 14 from eight balls and SRH needed 14 to win from the final over.

In the final over, Pathan smashed a six and a four in the second and third delivery to take the match away from the Daredevils. He eventually ended his innings at 27 from 12 deliveries as Sunrisers Hyderabad won the match with a ball left to spare.

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