Mohali: Opener Shikhar Dhawan’s fluent 77 and Kane Williamson’s unbeaten 54 paved the way for Sunrisers Hyderabad’s 26-run victory over Kings XI Punjab in their IPL match, here on Friday.
Home skipper Glenn Maxwell invited Hyderabad to bat but could hardly trouble the visitors who negotiated the attack with remarkable ease posting a huge 207/3.
In reply to SRH’s strong total, Australian left-hander Shaun Marsh (84, 50b, 14x4, 2x6) played a lone hand for Punjab and looked threatening in his stay. But he didn’t receive the required support as SRH bowlers kept on picking wickets at regular intervals. Punjab managed 181/9 in their allotted overs.
They were in for an early setback when opener Martin Guptill (23, 11b, 4x4, 1x6) fell to Purple cap-holder Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/27) and slid further with dismissals of Manan Vohra and Maxwell to be reduced to 42/3 in five overs.
Marsh put on a 73-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Eoin Morgan (26, 21b, 2x4, 1x6) to raise slim hopes of revival.
But once Morgan went back in the 14th over, Punjab lost their way with Kumar returning in his second spell to dismiss Marsh in the 16th over shutting the door on Punjab.
Spinner Siddarth Kaul (3/36) and veteran Ashish Nehra (3/42) also chipped in with wickets at crucial junctures.
