New Delhi, May 26 (H.S.): In the match played on Sunday at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) delivered a remarkable performance, defeating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by a massive margin of 110 runs, bidding a victorious farewell to IPL 2025. While this match did not change anything in the playoff race, it was a battle of self-respect for both teams, and Hyderabad emerged victorious in a commanding fashion.

Hyderabad’s batsmen showcased an explosive performance in this match. Batting first, the team set a colossal score of 278 runs for the loss of 4 wickets. The innings was propelled by a rapid start from Abhishek Sharma (32 runs, 12 balls) and Travis Head (76 runs, 39 balls), who put together a blistering partnership of 92 runs in just 6 overs. Following this, South African explosive wicketkeeper-batsman Heinrich Klassen wreaked havoc in the field. He scored a century off just 37 balls, marking the joint third-fastest century in IPL history. Klassen’s innings was filled with boundaries and sixes, propelling his team to a gigantic total.

For Kolkata, only Sunil Narine (2 wickets) and Vaibhav Arora (1 wicket) were somewhat effective in bowling, while the other bowlers were at the mercy of Hyderabad’s batsmen.

Chasing a target of 278 runs, KKR stumbled right from the start. Opening batsman Sunil Narine scored 31 runs, but he received no support. Rahane (15), De Kock (9), and Raghuvanshi (15) returned to the pavilion quickly. Rinku Singh (9) and Andre Russell (0) were sent back to the pavilion by Harsh Dubey in just two balls, completely breaking Kolkata’s hopes. Lower-order batsmen Manish Pandey (37) and Harshit Rana (34) showed some fight, but it was too late by then.

From Hyderabad, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Malinaga, and Harsh Dubey each took three wickets, dismissing Kolkata’s innings for 168 runs.

With this splendid victory, Hyderabad concluded the season with confidence.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar