CHENNAI : Where do you begin after witnessing a hitting display so coruscating the records kept tumbling like a pack of cards?
In the end, Sunrisers Hyderabad finished with 277 in 20 overs, 14 better than Bengaluru’s 263. But while that innings was built on the back of Chris Gayle’s unbeaten 175 off 66 (the others, with a helping hand from extras, had made 88 from 56), this was collective brilliance on a surface where almost all bowlers contemplated a career change.
Here’s a small sample. When Heinrich Klassen got to his 50 in the 18th over, it was the third slowest for the hosts. His 23-ball effort half-century had been left in the shadows thanks to what had come before (Abhishek Sharma had got his in 16 balls while Travis Head, on debut, raised his bat after 18). However, when the South African was done with the bat, he had almost caught up in terms of the strike rate (80 off 34 at 235).
Before trying to make sense of the carnage that ensued under the lights on Wednesday night, if there’s any team that’s capable of a sustained hitting assault like this, it’s probably this team.
Right from Head — a nominative determinism if ever there was one — to Klassen, this side is filled with hedonistic stroke makers. Including Sharma may seem a bit post-facto but he possesses one of the best strike-rates for an uncapped Indian (145.8). He’s also one of those batters whose six per fours ratio is under two (one of the biggest batting metrics the support staff look in this format).
The Amritsar-born batter’s average ratio is one six per 1.91 fours. On Wednesday, he went better. 2.3 sixes per every four (Klassen, to get a perspective, 1.7 six per every four). But before Sharma assumed centrestage, it was Head who continued his love story with Indian tracks.
A few short months after that 100 in the World Cup final, he tore into the young Kwena Maphaka. Being adjudged player of the tournament at the Under-19 World Cup is one thing. It’s a totally different thing when you are bowling to the MVP of two senior ICC finals in 2023 (WTC and World Cup).
The Australian southpaw has a weakness against the short ball but if it’s inside his hitting arc, he has no problems. Off the third over, he launched into Maphaka, hitting two of his length balls into the stands. Maphaka lost his radar and saw two more balls being dispatched for boundaries. 40/0 after three overs.
Mayank Agarwal didn’t hang on too long but Sharma, if anything, went even more medieval.
Sharma and Head combined as they accounted for 23 runs in the last over of the powerplay as Gerald Coetzee travelled the distance. The end of the powerplay got the spin of Piyush Chawla but Sharma, 12 years his junior, welcomed him in rude fashion.
Three short balls were three short balls too many on this highway and Sharma, who made his IPL debut in 2018, despatched him for three maximums. Four more maximums flowed off his blade before Chawla got his man but it’s wasn’t a case of having the last laugh.
While Aiden Markram and Klassen took their time to get going, the innings itself felt like one highlights reel on steroids. Out of the 20 overs, Hyderabad didn’t hit at least one boundary in only two overs (it should come as no surprise that both of those were delivered by Jasprit Bumrah). While Coetzee also managed one, he conceded five wides — it was that kind of that night. After a relatively incident-free nine legal deliveries, the fun and games begun again as Klassen targeted the inexperience of Maphaka (he finished with figures of none for 66).
After the mayhem, Klassen credited the groundstaff for preparing a wicket like this. “We have got the best groundsmen in the world,” he said the host broadcaster. “A lot of pressure comes with the form. Our top-order set the tempo. It was incredible to have my best mate with me (while I scored those runs).”
Brief scores: SRH 277/3 in 20 ovs (Klaasen 80 n.o, Abhishek 63, Head 62) bt MI 246/5 in 20 ovs (Varma 64, David 42 n.o; Cummins 2/35).