File photo of Rashid Khan.
Sunrisers Hyderabad were off to a bad start to the Indian Premier League 2020 season when they slumped to defeat from a consolidating situation. With a set Jonny Bairstow (61 off 43) on the crease and eight wickets in hands in the last five overs with just 43 needed, victory seemed imminent.
But a certain Yuzvendra Chahal triggered an SRH middle-order collapse with two consecutive wickets including that of Bairstow. SRH never recovered from the shock and were bundled out 10 runs short from 164 target.
SRH will now look to bounce back from the loss and will take on Kolkata Knight Riders, who have their own headaches to deal with it after a heavy loss against defending champions in Abu Dhabi.
The SRH-KKR have often been a tie to watch out for with stars rising to the occasion. The most vividly recalled effort is of Rashid Khan putting in a 10-ball 34 cameo to take the Hyderabad side to 174 before running through KKR batting order with three wickets to win the all-important qualifier 2 match to reach final.
The turnaround and the impact prompted cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar to shower praises on the Afghan, calling him the best spinner in the world.
Recalling the match, the 22-year-old Afghan mystery spinner said he would like to repeat the effort when they take on KKR in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
“I will try to my best to repeat what I have done but that was the past. We might not get the situation as we have seen in that qualifier but I will still try to give it my best. Wherever I get the opportunity, whether it’s in the bowling department, batting to fielding. I will try my best to deliver for the team.
Talking further about Saturday’s encounter, the spinner said the team will look to adapt to the conditions in Abu Dhabi as quickly as possible after they played their first game in Dubai as the game is crucial for both the team. Especially after both KKR and SRH lost their respective opening games.
