SunRisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) explosive batting unit succumbed under pressure to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Qualifier 1 of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL). The team led by Pat Cummins faltered managing a mere 159 runs at the conclusion of the first innings after electing to bat first at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday May 21.
SunRisers Hyderabad’s commenced their game on a dismal note losing their opening pair consisting of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma in the initial overs. Rahul Tripathi found himself isolated at one end with Shahbaz Ahmed and Nitish Reddy failing to leave a lasting impression on the match.
Tripathi and Klaasen somewhat rebuilt the innings, but SunRisers Hyderabad’s suffered another collapse that they caused. Tripathi was run out, while Abdul Samad played an unnecessary aggressive shot with more than five overs left and few wickets remained.
Fans criticized SunRisers Hyderabad’s batting strategy on social media. Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
“Just thrown away wickets,” one tweet read.
“Batting first was a bold decision but looks like they took the pressure on themselves to put runs on the board,” one fan remarked.
“SRH Losing 8 wickets within the first 15 overs, all because of an aggressive batting strategy might be one of the biggest blunders of this IPL,” another tweet read.
SRH Were Restricted to 162 the Last Time They Played at the Narendra Modi Stadium
SunRisers Hyderabad’s struggled when they last played at the venue in IPL 2024. In the early rounds of the competition, they were limited to a low total and were unable to protect it. GT easily chased down the score, winning the match by seven wickets.
On that occasion, Mohit Sharma with his slower deliveries outperformed SRH, but this time, Mitchell Starc and his blistering offerings proved to be their undoing. With stats of 3/34, the left-arm pacer emerged as the top bowler.
“Have been fortunate to have played in some big games. Nine months ago, we played in front of a packed stadium. Nice to get a few early wickets, especially with the way SRH play. The whole bowling group was fantastic.”
Mitchell Starc
The victor of the KKR-SRH duel will go to the 2024 IPL final.