Mishra's all-round performances too much for Pune Warriors to handle

Amit Mishra’s hat-trick in the penultimate over took the Sunrisers Hyderabad to a nail-biting 11-run win over a depleted Pune Warriors side. Pune Warriors bowled extremely well to restrict Sunrisers Hyderabad to 119 runs, but they were thwarted by excellent bowling from the Sunrisers.

Robin Uthappa and Aaron Finch batted beautifully as the duo put on a wonderful partnership of 48 runs for the first wicket within 4 overs. Generally, many sides begin a chase cautiously to ensure that they don’t lose too many wickets within the first 6 overs. But Uthappa came to the party as he struck a couple of blistering boundaries off Ishant Sharma’s first over to up the ante. After the departure of Uthappa (22), and Finch (16), Pune Warriors were never able to boost the run-rate as the Sunrisers bowlers were on top. Perera bowled superbly as he maintained a tight line and length and did not give the batsman enough room to free his arms. He was also economical, as his figures read 4-0-20-3.

The run-chase looked a bit scratchy as Pune Warriors lost two wickets within the Power Play. Steve Smith and Suman batted sensibly following the wicket of Finch in the fourth over. Steve Smith was struggling for momentum as the Sunrisers seamers were on top. Ishant maintained a tight line and length and consequently, he was rewarded with the wicket of Smith for 17 (25) to leave Pune reeling at 76/4.

There was no constructive partnership in the Pune Warriors innings as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. The shot selection wasn’t accurate, and consequently, they paid the price for it.

Angelo Mathews, as captain, failed to lead from the front as he was dismissed for 20 at a crucial moment in the match. Following his dismissal, Amit Mishra ran through the tailenders to secure a win for the Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Sunrisers Hyderabad, on the other hand, have been struggling to put a decent score on the board. Yet again, their batsman failed to produce quality innings as they didn’t fancy the pace and swing of Bhuvaneswar Kumar, whose figures read 4-0-18-3.

With the departure of their top-class batsmen, Mishra was required to put in a big performance. He and Samantray re-constructed the innings for the Sunrisers Hyderabad as the duo put on a salvaging partnership of 31 runs, before Samantray was dismissed for 37 by Rahul Sharma. However, Amit Mishra ensured the Sunrisers posted a competitive total that could be defended by their bowlers.

Sunrisers Hyderabad bowled magnificently and rattled Pune Warriors’ top-order in no time. The batting is the only concern for the Sunrisers as they fell short by 30 runs, which would perhaps be adjusted with the return of Dhawan.

Sunrisers Hyderabad play their next game against Kings XI Punjab on April 19, while Pune Warriors play their next game against Kings XI Punjab on April 21.