Cricket Harma Belts 141 If Hyderabad IPLS pulls out the second highest successful chase

April 12 (Reuters) -Sunisers Hyderabad opener Abhishek Sharma was delighted after his lightning beat of 141 out of 55 balls helped his team get a loss of four games in the Indian Premier League with an eight-point victory against Punjab Kings on Saturday. Sharma hit 10 sixes and 14 boundaries when he noticed his first IPL century, the highest score by an Indian in the competition. His contribution helped the Hyderabad host to pull off the second highest successful chase in the history of the tournament with nine balls to save after Punjab placed 245-6 on a batting lane. The record for IPL’s highest successful chase still belongs to Punjab, which chased a target of 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders last year. “This one is very special because I wanted to break that loss of loss. Losing four games back-to-back was very difficult. But we never talked about it in the team,” said Sharma, player of the match, in his interview after the match. Hyderabad, who won their seasonal opener at the same venue in another match against Rajasthan Royals, suffered four straight losses when their fighters struggled to perform. Captain Pat Cummins said Hyderabad never felt they were out of the game, although Punjab piled up on the runs, with Shreyas Iyer (82 out of 36) leading the charge. “It fits our style. As a bowling group, we know what we’re going to get, kind of on your seats, try to hang on,” Cummins said about the field. “Any more than under 10 you feel like it’s a big win … It seems crazy that you feel confident that you will be able to chase close to 250.” Sharma compiled an opening partnership of 171 runs in 12.2 overs with Travis Head (66 out of 37), which made the way for the chase, as Heinrich Klaasen and Ishan Kishan brought well in time to 247-2. “Nice to get on the winner’s list. We needed it. We cut our work at half the stage. We wanted to give ourselves a chance,” Head said after the game. “I was a little patient in the first two overs. Abhi left for a kite … we complement each other very well. ” (Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru) First Published: 13 Apr 2025, 01:22 am Ist