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Sunrisers Hyderabad tested the cricket adage that catches win matches to its limit on Tuesday and still had just enough in the reserve as they snatched a two-run win over Punjab Kings in the IPL contest here.
Now, Hanuma Vihari is no longer part of the side that won the 2016 title, but the cricketer from Andhra Pradesh has showed keen interest in his Andhra state team mate Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was SRH’s unlikely hero after hammering a match-winning 37-ball 64 to revive the innings.
When Reddy hit a winning six against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their previous game, Vihari praised him on social media, saying “That was just a glimpse from Nitish. Invest in him. He is the next big thing not just in franchise cricket. Batter who can bowl medium-pace. Rare commodity.”
Before the Mullanpur game, the unbeaten 14 against CSK was 20-year-old Reddy’s highest score in IPL. Bought for his base price of ₹20 lakh in the auction ahead of IPL 2023, in which he played two matches, went wicketless and did not get to bat.
Against PBKS, Reddy showed his batting prowess and chipped in when his team needed him to fire. With SRH tottering at 39/3 in powerplay, Reddy played a vital role in getting SRH out of slumber to eventually reach 182/9. In reply, hosts PBKS could not cash in on all the dropped catches, still falling two runs short after finishing on 180/6.
Reddy’s performance again saw Vihari take to social media. “NKR- comes from a humble background. His father left his job for his career, he guided him and nurtured him. His hard work has paid dividends and I’ve seen him when he was 17 years old. Proud of him of how he’s grown as a player. Asset for SRH n India in the future!” He plays for Andhra Pradesh and has already appeared in 17 first-class matches and 22 List A games.
Put into bat, SRH lost openers Travis Head (21), Abhishek Sharma (16) and Aiden Markram (0) with left-arm medium-pacer Arshdeep Singh picking up two wickets. Stepping up with his team in trouble, Reddy took centrestage and smashed PBKS bowlers all over the ground. His innings included four boundaries and five sixes. Though he kept losing partners at the other end, Reddy kept playing attacking shots. Rahul Tripathi made 11 while Heinrich Klaasen was dismissed for nine. So, the 50-run partnership between Reddy and Abdul Samad was what gave SRH a decent total to defend. Samad made a 12-ball 25 to prop up SRH’s total. Reddy was eventually caught in the 17th over, holing out to Kagiso Rabada to long-off against Arshdeep Deep’s wider delivery.
Shabhaz Ahmed’s unbeaten 7-ball 14 took SRH to 182. Arshdeep finished with impressive figures of 4-0-29-4. PBKS chance faltered very early. Skipper Shikhar Dhawan, whose failure to review Head’s nick in the first over didn’t prove costly, was caught behind off Bhuvneshwar Kumar after Cummins brought himself on in the second over and bowled Jonny Bairstow.
Bhuvi grabbed the next two wickets quickly to put SRH on top. He got Prabhsimran Singh and Dhawan, reducing PBKS 20/3 in 4.4 overs. Sam Curran (29) and Sikandar Raza (28) tried to steady the ship but their stay was cut short. In the end it was left to the last game heroes, Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma to try and almost pull off a stunning chase.
Needing 29 off six balls, the in-form duo gave their all with Jaydev Unadkat bowling three wides and leaking 27 runs. Sharma hammered two while Singh hit a last-ball six to take the match close but in the end SRH won. Sharma scored 33 not out off 15 deliveries while Singh remained 46* off 25.
“For me, it is a big contribution for my team and myself,” Reddy said at the presentation. “I have been talking to myself that I have to believe in myself and that I have to be there (for my team). The seamers were bowling well, so I did not want to take them on. When the spinners came on, I wanted to attack them and that is what I did. The slower bouncer is really working, so I just wanted to use the dimensions. I want to continue like this for my team, with the bat, ball and in the field.”
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