Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) almost lost twice in less than three weeks after scoring 270-plus in the 2024 edition of the IPL but have won on both occasions as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) eventually lost the steam chasing down a record 288 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. It was a run-fest of the highest order. As many as 549 runs were scored, a record aggregate for an IPL match and not many times do you see a team scoring 262 and end up on the losing side as Dinesh Karthik with 35-ball 83 kept going, just didn't give up and eventually ensured that RCB didn't lose much on the NRR.
Chasing 288, RCB had to go from the first ball and both Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli did what was required. A 79-run powerplay, higher than that of Sunrisers Hyderabad, was a good start. However, in a game where the required rate is around 15, it was still not enough and a wicket and just five runs in the next over from Mayank Markande was just what the doctor ordered for SRH but not for RCB.
Highest totals in IPL
287/3 - SRH vs RCB (Bengaluru, 2024)
277/3 - SRH vs MI (Hyderabad, 2024)
272/7 - KKR vs DC (Visakhapatnam, 2024)
263/5 - RCB vs PWI (Bengaluru, 2013)
262/7 - RCB vs SRH (Bengaluru, 2024)
Highest match aggregate in IPL
549 - RCB vs SRH (287/3, 262/7) in Bengaluru, 2024
523 - SRH vs MI (277/3, 246/5) in Hyderabad, 2024
469 - CSK vs RR (246/5, 223/5) in Chennai, 2010
459 - KXIP vs KKR (245/6, 214/8) in Indore, 2018
458 - PBKS vs LSG (257/5, 201) in Mohali, 2023
Losing Will Jacks in the next over was the 'it never rains but pours moment' for RCB given they were dependent on the English all-rounder to give the kick in the middle-order. Du Plessis completed a half-century and kept doing his work but he got no support from the other end. Markande removed Rajat Patidar and then came the turning point of the innings, irrespective of what Karthik went on to do later in the innings.
Pat Cummins, who was the star in the 277 game vs Mumbai, was the star with the ball again as he removed his opposite number du Plessis and left-hander Saurav Chauhan in the same over to kill the game there and then. Dinesh Karthik and Mahipal Lomror took a couple of overs to get their eyes in and by the time they started hitting, the required run rate was already 19.
Lomror did well, Anuj Rawat showed that he can do something at death too and Karthik obviously didn't just give up but never it looked like that RCB were in a position to overhaul the target and Sunrisers are now in the top four.
Earlier, it was Travis Head's maiden T20 century, the fastest by a Sunrisers Hyderabad batter and the fourth fastest in the IPL, that laid the foundation of a monumental score for the Orange Army. Head just didn't stop. He kept going for his shots and all of it came off and he reached his ton off just 39 balls. Head got out in the 13th over, but he had done his job. Over to Heinrich Klaasen.
Klaasen smashed a 22-ball fifty followed by Abdul Samad's 10-ball 37 that helped the Sunrisers post a humongous total of 287 runs, the highest in IPL and the second-highest in T20 history.
