Fifties from Yuvraj Singh and Moises Henriques helped SRH post 207 and that was always going to be a step too far for an RCB side that was without it’s top three run-getters from IPL 2016 and so it proved. Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 35 runs and get off to a winning start in IPL 2017.
After losing the toss and being put into bat, SRH lost David Warner early but the rest of the top-order all contributed and on the back of a cameo from Ben Cutting, SRH posted 207/4 in their 20 overs. In response, quite a few RCB players got starts but no one could kick on and get the big score and they were eventually bundled out for 172.
RCB captain Shane Watson:
“I think we were slightly off with the ball and we did not get one big partnership while batting. We have got a lot of different combinations to last year. We are just running our combinations. Hopefully, I can lead the team better next time. I was confident enough (of chasing) as the pitch was good and especially with the firepower in our top six.”
SRH captain David Warner:
"It was fantastic. The guys backed themselves. We knew it was going to be a good wicket. We tried to be positive in the first six. I think the stats went into my head. That's the way the game goes. You're always mindful with a power-packed batting line-up like that. Yuvi was superb. The Yuvi of old we know. Whatever he's been doing in the season he's had has been fantastic. Dhawan's been working hard. He spoke to me the other day saying he's in good touch. What a fantastic prospect (Rashid Khan). On the world stage, in the IPL environment, fantastic stuff from him. He was a little nervous but I told him to back himself.”
Man of the Match was Yuvraj Singh for his fastest fifty in IPL and his innings of 62 from just 27 balls:
“Every IPL you've got to bring something new (talking about the hairdo). Gabbar (Dhawan) is very famous in Hyderabad so I'll take the second place. Confidence, you know. When you make a comeback and play well, you get the confidence and frees the mind. Just watching the ball and play accordingly. I've been working a lot more on my batting. I've been working on the short ball and the slower ball and have been trying to hit in the V. I was lucky today, got dropped. But I've been playing the short ball well. As you get older, you've got to train harder.”
Here are the reactions from the cricket fraternity:
VVS Laxman:
There was plenty of praise for Yuvraj Singh:
Michael Clarke:
Murali Kartik:
Ravichandran Ashwin may not be featuring in the tournament, but Ben Cutting impressed him with his all-round exploits:
Alex Tudor:
James Taylor:
Lisa Sthalekar:
