HYDERABAD — Ishan
Kishan's electrifying century proved to be the difference as Sunrisers
Hyderabad (SRH) defeated Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 44 runs in the second match
of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season at the Rajiv Gandhi International
Stadium here on Sunday.
It was a completely entertaining run-fest which saw 528 runs
being scored in 40 overs of the match as bowlers endured a tough day in
Hyderabad. Earlier, Kishan slammed his maiden IPL ton on his SRH debut to steer
the side to 286/6, the second-highest total in IPL history.
Chasing the gigantic target of 287, Rajasthan suffered a
chaotic start as they lost opener Yashasvi Jaiswal (1), captain Riyan Parag
(4), and Nitish Rana (11) in the first five overs. However, Impact Substitute
Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel provided the much-needed juice to Rajasthan's
innings. The duo kept the run-rate ticking nearly around the required run rate
and stitched a 111-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Meanwhile, Samson and Jurel completed their half-centuries
off 26 and 28 balls respectively. As things were looking in control for
Rajasthan, pacer Harshal Patel turned the tide in Hyderabad's favour with the
dismissal of Samson (66) in the 14th over. In the next over, spinner Adam Zampa
removed Jurel for 70, studded with six sixes and five fours, to give a double
blow to RR. In the end, Shimron Hetmyer and Shubham Dubey fired on all
cylinders but could not take the side over the line.
Hetmyer played a quickfire knock of 42 off 23 balls while
Dubey scored 11-ball 34 not out at an electric strike rate of 309.09 with the
help of four sixes and a four. In the end, Rajasthan were only able to reach
242/6 in 20 overs with Simranjeet Singh and Harshal Patel bagging two scalps
each.
Earlier, banking on blazing knocks by Travis Head and
Abhishek Sharma, Kishan was on cruise control mode since the start of his
innings and gave a thumping reply to his critics with a maiden IPL ton.
After being invited to bat first, the SRH openers started
from where they left last season as Abhishek commenced an assault on the RR
attack in the power-play. The Indian opener got off the mark with consecutive
fours against Fazalhaq Farooqi in the first over of the match.
Head from the other end hammered four and a six against
Maheesh Theekshana in the second over to give a blistering start to the side.
Abhishek unleashed his full potential when he struck three successive fours
before Head ended Farooqi's over with a six to accumulate 21 runs from it.
Meanwhile, Theekshana broke the opening partnership and
dismissed Abhishek for 11-ball 24 on the first ball of the fourth over. Ishan
Kishan joined Head in the middle and carried the momentum as he smashed
consecutive fours off Theekshana in the same over.
In the fifth over, Head gave an unforgettable welcome to
Jofra Archer as the Australian amassed four fours and a six off six deliveries
to gather 23 off it. With 16 from the sixth over, SRH accumulated 94 in the
power-play to lay a solid foundation for the gigantic total.
Despite the end-of-field restrictions, Head completed his
first half-century of the season in 21 balls and stitched an 85-run quickfire
partnership off 39 balls for the second wicket. He was dismissed by pacer
Tushar Deshpande in the 10th over. Head scored 31-ball 67 laced with nine fours
and three sixes.
Nitish Kumar Reddy came in at No. 4 and took over from where
his predecessor left and struck two boundaries off Archer in the 11th over.
On the other hand, Kishan slammed back-to-back sixes off
Archer to complete his half-century in 25 balls on his SRH debut. He hit
another six before smashing Farooqi for a six behind square. Reddy too joined
the party and dispatched the short ball to deep square before Kishan hit four
on the final ball of the over.
Nitish's (15-ball 30) stay was cut short by Theekshana in
the 15th over as SRH crossed the 200-run mark. He was involved in a 29-ball
72-run partnership with Kishan. It was also the joint-fastest team 200 in the
history of the IPL, equalling Royal Challengers Bengaluru's feat against Punjab
Kings in 2016.
Heinrich Klaasen joined Kishan as the scoring rate didn't
come down for the franchise in the final phase of the innings with the help of
regular boundaries. The duo added 56 runs in just 25 balls as Klaasen departed
after contributing 14-ball 34 with the help of five fours and a six. Meanwhile,
Kishan completed his century off 45 balls to become the first player in the
season to reach the milestone. He remained unbeaten on 106 off 47 balls, his
knock studded with 11 fours and six sixes.
For Rajasthan, Tushar Deshpande bagged three wickets while
Theekshana returned with the figures of 2-52 in his four overs.
Brief scores:
Sunrisers Hyderabad 286/6 in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 106 not
out, Travis Head 67; Tushar Deshpande 3-44, Maheesh Theekshana 2-52) beat Rajasthan
Royals 242/6 in 20 overs (Dhruv Jurel 70, Sanju Samson 66; Harshal Patel 2-34,
Simarjeet Singh 2-46) by 44 runs.
