Praful Hinge’s name will quickly become part of IPL folklore after a stunning return to the league in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s opening match against Rajasthan Royals on Monday. The Vidarbha quick delivered a dream start by striking four times for 34 runs, including a remarkable triple blow in the very first over that helped set the tone for a convincing SRH win.
Key takeaways
- Praful Hinge returned to the IPL and finished with figures of 4/34 against Rajasthan Royals.
- In the first over, he removed Vaibhav Suryavanshi for a golden duck, then followed up by taking wickets of Dhruv Jurel and Lhuan-dre Pretorius—leaving RR reeling at 1/3.
- Hinge’s three wickets in an opening over are the best such feat by any bowler in the first over of an IPL match.
- Sunrisers Hyderabad posted 216/6 batting first, led by Ishan Kishan’s 91 off 44 balls.
- Rajasthan Royals were bowled out for 159, handing SRH a 57-run victory in Hyderabad.
- RR’s four-match winning run ended, and SRH moved to fourth place with their second win of the season.
Hinge’s first-over masterpiece sets the stage
Before the chase even had a proper rhythm, Hinge delivered a statement over that changed the entire complexion of the contest. Coming in as a debutant and then immediately making an impact, he struck on the second ball to send Vaibhav Suryavanshi back without scoring. The momentum didn’t stop there—within the same over, Hinge also dismissed Dhruv Jurel for 0 and then Lhuan-dre Pretorius for 0, leaving Rajasthan Royals at a precarious 1/3 inside the first six legal deliveries.
This spell stands out not just for its wickets, but for how efficiently it arrived—three strikes in the opening over representing the strongest such bowling impact in an IPL first-over record.
SRH power to 216/6, then defend it with four-wicket bursts
With the bat, Sunrisers Hyderabad built a commanding total of 216/6. Skipper Ishan Kishan anchored the innings with an aggressive 91 off 44 balls, including eight fours and six sixes. The total also benefited from useful contributions higher up and around the middle—Heinrich Klaasen made 40 off 26 balls with one boundary-four and three maximums, while Nitish Kumar Reddy added 28 off 13 balls, striking four boundaries in his cameo.
Rajasthan Royals began their chase with a plan that briefly looked promising. Donovan Ferreira scored 69 off 44 balls, smashing seven fours and three sixes, while Ravindra Jadeja contributed 45 off 32 balls with five fours. Together, the pair put up a century partnership for the sake of net run-rate and kept SRH under pressure for long enough to delay the collapse.
However, the debutants played a key role in turning the match back to SRH. Sakib Hussain finished with 4/24, and the Royals were eventually restricted to 159 all out in 19 overs, sealing SRH’s 57-run win.
How the chase unfolded: early strikes, mid-innings fightback, then collapse
Rajasthan’s chase began unsteadily. Sakib Hussain struck in the second over by dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal for just one run. Then in the third over, Praful Hinge returned to finish the damage by removing Riyan Parag for a six-ball four, dropping RR to 9/5 inside three overs.
From there, Jadeja and Donovan tried to salvage the innings. They combined to push Rajasthan to 40/5 at the end of six overs, with Donovan continuing to find boundaries—two consecutive fours in the seventh over took RR past the 50-run mark. At the halfway stage, the visitors were 70/5, with Jadeja on 27 not out and Donovan on 31 not out.
Donovan kept accelerating. In the 11th over, he struck Shivang Kumar for a four and a six, and in the 12th, he hit Harsh Dubey for two fours and a six, bringing up his half-century off 31 balls. Rajasthan also crossed the 100-run line in 12.2 overs, keeping the chase alive.
The stand that threatened to grow into something bigger was eventually broken by Sakib. He bowled Donovan for 69 off 44 balls—an innings featuring seven fours and three sixes. After that setback, RR slipped to 127/6 in the 15th over.
Jadeja’s dismissal followed soon after. Eshan Malinga struck to remove Jadeja for 45 off 32 balls, with five fours in his innings, and Rajasthan then sank to 129/7 in 15.3 overs.
Sakib Hussain then struck again in the 17th over, taking out Jofra Archer for 2 and Ravi Bishnoi for 0. Rajasthan’s innings finally ended at 159 in 19 overs, confirming SRH’s comfortable win.
Impact on the table
Rajasthan Royals saw their four-match winning streak come to an end despite still sitting at the top of the points table. Sunrisers Hyderabad, meanwhile, recorded their second victory of the season and climbed to fourth place after defeating RR by 57 runs in Hyderabad.
