Mumbai Indians’ extraordinary capitulation, led by Hardik Pandya, against SunRisers Hyderabad on Wednesday will be remembered for a long time. SRH pulled out all the stops and scored 277/3 in 20 overs – the highest ever score in the IPL’s 17-year history – while MI bowlers were absolutely clueless. Although MI batters tried to put up a fight, it was not enough to surpass such a huge total. For Hardik Pandya, who took over the MI captaincy from Rohit Sharma, this was the second defeat in a row.
Hardik Pandya’s captaincy is being questioned by former Indian cricket team star Irfan Pathan. Despite having Jasprit Bumrah in their ranks, Pandya brought in the star bowler late. That decision irked Pathan.
Hardik Pandya’s captaincy was ordinary to say the least. Keeping Bumrah away for too long while the carnage was going on was beyond my comprehension.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) March 27, 2024
“Hardik Pandya’s captaincy was ordinary to say the least. Keeping Bumrah away for too long when the carnage was going on was beyond my understanding,” Pathan wrote on X.
“Who would have thought a record IPL score would be against MI. Crazy knock from SRH. #SRHvMI,” he wrote in another post.
Who would have thought that a record score of IPL would be against MI. Crazy strike from SRH. #SRHvMI
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) March 27, 2024
Pathan also joked about Pandya’s batting. During the chase, MI achieved 246/5 in 20 overs. Pandya scored 24 off 20 balls. “If the entire team plays at a strike rate of 200, Captain cannot hit at a strike rate of 120,” he wrote.
If the entire team plays with a strike rate of 200, the captain cannot hit with a strike rate of 120.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) March 27, 2024
Talking about the match, the records plummeted from left to right and center as Sunrisers Hyderabad hit 277 for three, the highest total in IPL history, leaving Mumbai Indians shocked on Wednesday. Travis Head (62 off 24) and Abhishek Sharma (63 off 23) put on a sensational display of power-hitting, with the latter taking the franchise record for the Australian’s fastest fifty within minutes.
Heinrich Klaasen (80 not out from 34 balls) eventually provided the fireworks and helped SRH break an eleven-year-old record. The previous highest total in IPL was 263 for five, achieved by Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2013.
It rained fours and sixes throughout the innings as Head and Sharma played with the Mumbai Indians’ attack.
Head, who was surprisingly left out of the team in the opening game, cemented his status as one of the most dangerous hitters in the game with a scintillating effort.
He broke David Warner’s record of the fastest fifty by an SRH batsman with an 18-ball half-century before Sharma surpassed Head’s feat 20 balls later by reaching the milestone in 16 balls.
Head, who was dropped by compatriot Tim David at the start of his innings, opened his front leg and hit the boundaries at will, collecting a total of nine fours and three sixes.
The left-hander completed his fifty with an inside-out four wide on middle before sending a Gerald Coetzee bouncer for a six over deep midwicket, prompting opposition skipper Hardik Pandya to acknowledge the Australian’s bold strike.
When Head departed, Sharma went hammer and tongs, focusing mainly on the cow corner for his seven sixes and three boundaries.
It has been a nightmarish start to the IPL for 17-year-old South African pacer Kwena Maphaka, who was part of the Mumbai Indians squad after his exploits in the U-19 World Cup.
He leaked a whopping 66 runs in his four overs. The left-arm pacer could not recover from Head’s attack in his second over in which he conceded 22 runs.
With the majority of Mumbai bowlers taken to the cleaners, it was surprising that Mumbai Indians captain Pandya waited until the 13th over to hand Jasprit Bumrah his second over.
After Sharma’s dismissal, the in-form Klaasen ensured that SRH’s six innings did not end. Klaasen finished with seven sixes, with the maximum of a Bumrah bouncer standing out.
Klaasen almost got SRH over the line with his breathtaking knockout against KKR at the Eden Gardens.
Former skipper Aiden Markram scored 42 off 28 balls.
With PTI inputs
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