CHENNAI: It was striking how KL Rahul confessed at the toss that he had hoped to lose the toss and let David Warner make the decision. It gave the impression of a rather tentative side unsure about its own strengths. A string of defeats meant Kings XI Punjab made three changes as Mujeeb ur Rahman was included in the XI.
Things didn't get their way as a more pro-active and decisive Sunrisers managed to secure a 69 win. Jonny Bairstow and Warner began on an aggressive note as they hit the top gear leaving Punjab in total disarray. The Englishman especially was at his free-flowing best. The duo stitched together a mammoth 160-run partnership.
Warner scored his ninth consecutive fifty against Punjab while Bairstow narrowly missed out on a century after getting out for 97 (off 55 balls). However, in T20 cricket, there is no fool-proof formula or approach and Punjab got right back into the mix after Bairstow and Warner departed.
Their middle-order which has been suspect, was wobbly but still managed to post 201/6. With Kings XI having their own lethal opening pair in Rahul and Mayank Agarwal, a chase was on. But the Hyderabad side did well to neutralize the duo.
However, Sunrisers' other weakness was also laid bare as lack of an experienced fifth bowler was exploited fully with Nicholas Pooran bludgeoning youngsters Abhishek Sharma and Abdul Samad on his way to the fastest fifty of IPL, taking just 17 balls.
He went onto make 77 (off 37 balls) but Warner was brave and used his other bowlers well as Kings XI batting just collapsed to get bowled out for 132 from 16.5 overs.
Brief Scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad: 201 for 6 in 20 overs (Jonny Bairstow 97, David Warner 52; Ravi Bishnoi 3/29) defeated Kings XI Punjab: 132 all out in 16.5 overs (Nicholas Pooran 77; Rashid Khan 3/12)