Hyderabad, April 6: Tearaway pacer Dale Steyn grabbed three wickets in a sensational over as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Pune Warriors by 22 runs in a low-scoring IPL match here on Friday.
Playing in their first match of the IPL under a new name, the Sunrisers defended a small total of 126 for six with their bowlers producing a disciplined show to bundle out the Warriors for 104 in 18.5 overs at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium.
Steyn dismissed tailenders Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rahul Sharma and Ashok Dinda in the space of four balls in the 19th over to end the Warriors’ innings. The South African fast bowler conceded just 11 runs in his 3.5 overs.
Leg-spinner Amit Mishra also claimed three wickets for 19 runs from his four overs while Thisara Perera took two for 29 runs.
The Warriors batsmen fell in quick succession after their openers Robin Uthappa (24) and Manish Pandey (15) raised 36 runs from 41 balls. From 36 for one in the seventh over, they were reduced to 50 for four in the 12th over and they lost the plot from there. Uthappa’s was the highest score for Warriors while Yuvraj Singh could contribute just two runs.
Chasing a small target, the Warriors made a slow start as they struggled to score against the pace of Steyn and Ishant Sharma. The Warriors were 18 for no loss at the end of the fifth over before Uthappa decided to take on the Sunrisers bowlers. He first hit Ishant for a six in the sixth over before clobbering Perera for three fours on the trot in the next over.
But the Sri Lankan bowler had the last laugh as he had the batsman caught in the penultimate ball of the same over to reduce the Warriors to 36 for one in the seventh over.
Two overs later, Perera scalped his second wicket in the form of Marlon Samuels (5) as the batsman gave a simple catch to Cameron White. The Warriors were dealt a severe blow as they lost the wicket of Yuvraj eight balls later off the bowling of Amit Mishra. Yuvraj charged down the wicket but the flat delivery of Mishra beat the batsman down the leg side and Parthiv took the bails off in a jiffy.
When Yuvraj left, the Warriors were 47 for three in the 10th over, needing 80 runs from the 10 overs remaining. Pandey fell two overs later — 12th — caught by White after a Mishra delivery got the thick edge of the bat.
Abhishek Nayar (19) perished in the 16th over while trying to accelerate the chase and New Zealander Ross Taylor (19) followed him in the dressing room in the next over. Mitchell Marsh was out five balls after Taylor. Steyn then applied the finishing touches.
Earlier, Sunrisers Hyderabad failed to impress with their batting as they could score just 126 for six.
Put into bat, Sunrisers made a steady start but later lost wickets at a regular intervals. They failed to stitch any substantial partnership, the highest being the opening stand of 34 from 32 balls between Parthiv Patel (19) and Akshath Reddy (27).
Thisara Perera top-scored with a 18-ball 30 with the help of three fours and a six. Warriors’ bowlers put up a disciplined effort to deny the home side easy runs. Ashok Dinda was the pick of bowlers with two wickets for 29.
Sunrisers made a steady start with Parthiv and Akshath Reddy raising 34 runs for the opening wicket before the slide started. Still, they had the last laugh in the end.
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