Heinrich Klaasen, a SunRisers Hyderabad hitter, was cheered on by his daughter Laya from the stands as he crushed the Mumbai Indians (MI) on March 27.
The 32-year-old slammed an incredible 80* off 34 deliveries, including four boundaries and seven maximums, to lead SRH to a record 277/3 in 20 overs, the biggest total in IPL history.
Heinrich Klaasen has started the IPL 2024 season in deadly form. He hit 63 off 29 runs to nearly lead his team to a remarkable victory over the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the opener.
Heinrich Klaasen’s daughter was seen wearing the team’s shirt and waving a flag in a video broadcast by the SRH’s social media handle, cheering on her father throughout his onslaught.
Here is a video of the same:
Klaasen has been probably the world’s top T20 hitter over the last year, bludgeoning opponents at the international and franchise levels.
Despite finishing last season at the bottom of the league, the South African sparkled, scoring 448 runs at an average of nearly 50 and a strike rate of 177.
Prior to Klaasen’s scorching innings, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma both scored fast half-centuries for SRH. The duo scored 50s off 18 and 16 deliveries, respectively, to enable the team wreak havoc on the hapless MI bowlers.
“Was an unbelievable wicket” – Heinrich Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen thanked the groundsmen for the highly batting-friendly conditions at Hyderabad following his magnificent innings against MI.
SRH smashed RCB’s 11-year record of 263/5 in 2013, owing to scary knocks from practically everyone who stepped out to bat.
During the middle inning break, Klaasen said:
“We got the best groundsmen in the world. Was an unbelievable wicket. They (top order batters) set the tempo at the front. There was a lot of pressure coming into this game. We have incredible batters up at the top.”
Heinrich Klaasen
Many records broke during the match. MI chased the target quickly, scoring 246/5 in twenty overs. Combined, both teams amassed 523 runs – a new T20 high. It marked the initial IPL instance surpassing 500 total runs.
The victory allowed SRH open their account on the points table following their defeat in the first game. MI has opened yet another season slowly, losing their first two games.
SRH’s next match is against the Gujarat Titans (GT) on March 31, while MI faces the Rajasthan Royals (RR) the following day.
