Sunrisers Hyderabad was reeling at 38 for two, when the cameras zoomed in on the team’s batting coach Brian Lara. The West Indies legend was engaged in a conversation with Nicholas Pooran in the dugout, perhaps instructing him on how to plan out his innings when he walks out to bat.
And the seasoned Pooran seemed to have taken Lara’s advice seriously as his 24-ball 34 (3×4, 2×6) brought Sunrisers Hyderabad closer to the target, before Avesh Khan (four for 24) claimed two consecutive wickets in the 18th over to pull off a 12-run win for Lucknow Super Giants in an Indian Premier League (IPL) fixture.
After half-centuries by KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda guided Lucknow to 169 for seven, Avesh dismissed Hyderabad openers Kane Williamson and Abhishek Sharma inside the first six overs. Rahul Tripathi (44, 30b, 5×4, 1×6), however, forged a 44-stand with Aiden Markram for the third wicket. Making the most of a dropped catch by Hooda, Tripathi aimed to build up a long partnership, but Krunal Pandya removed both Markram and Tripathi in quick succession.
Four wickets gone, the onus was on Pooran to fire and after settling in, he forged a 48-run partnership with Washington Sundar. With just 33 required off 18 deliveries, Pooran welcomed Avesh with a six and attempted a big one again, but ended up offering a catch to Hooda. And even before Sunrisers could react, Avesh removed Abdul Samad for a duck.
And with that, Sunrisers fell 12 runs short, despite Washington and Romario Shepherd trying to turn things around.
Earlier, Sunrisers’ decision to win the toss and field paid off as Washington’s quick wickets saw the opposition struggle at 27 for three inside the first PowerPlay.
But Lucknow fought back with Hooda (51, 33b, 3×4, 3×6) and captain Rahul (68, 50b, 5×4, 1×6) building an 87-run stand for the fourth wicket. The duo took a bit of time before piling up 20 runs off Umran Malik’s 10th over.
Hooda once again hit Malik for a couple of boundaries and a six in the 14th over to take firm control of the game, before offering a catch to Rahul Tripathi on the midwicket boundary off a Shepherd delivery.
However, after Hooda’s departure, the young Ayush Badoni (19, 12b, 3×4) paired with Rahul, before the Lucknow captain was trapped leg before by birthday boy T. Natarajan. Despite making early inroads, Sunrisers failed to make an impact as Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Malik were unable to find breakthroughs.
