IPL 2018, SRH vs MI: Hits and Misses
With 15 needed in 3 overs and 5 wickets in hand, you would expect the chasing team to win the game easily. However, that was not the case in the 7th game of this season’s IPL as Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians played out a thriller from the aforementioned situation.
Another strong bowling performance from SRH kept MI down to 147. SRH got off to a good start with Shikhar Dhawan (45) and Wriddhiman Saha (22) adding 62 in 41 balls. But Mayank Markande’s 4-wicket burst pulled MI back in the game. And then Jasprit Bumrah and Mustafizur Rahman took 2 wickets each in the 18th and 19th overs respectively, to make MI the favourites.
But with 11 required in the last over, Deepak Hooda’s six off the first ball and Billy Stanlake’s last-ball four won it for SRH.
#5 Hit: Deepak Hooda
In this game, Hooda batted at No. 6 and walked out to bat when Markande was wreaking havoc. At 89 for 4 in the 11th over, the required run-rate was not a problem, but SRH needed someone to bat through and guide them home and Deepak Hooda did just that. Hooda is known for his power-hitting and his ability as a finisher. After playing his debut season with Rajasthan Royals, the cricketer was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016 and was again bought back by SRH in the auction this year.
The Baroda all-rounder kick-started his innings with a thumping boundary. But he didn’t score another boundary (four or a six) till the 20th over. He kept rotating the strike and ran hard between the wickets. With 15 needed in 3 overs, SRH lost 4 wickets (for 4 runs) in two overs and that made MI the favourites. However, Hooda kept his cool and struck a superb six off the first ball of the last over. Stanlake then struck a boundary off the final ball to seal the game.
Hooda struck a calm 32 in 25 balls and his calmness was one of the key features in the death overs.