MUMBAI, CMC – West Indies left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein played a supporting role in helping Sunrisers Hyderabad get a welcome win under their belt after three losses in a row when they beat Delhi Capitals by nine runs in the Indian Premier League yesterday.
Out-of-favour West Indies duo of Andre Russell and Sunil Narine however, failed to fire, and Gujarat Titans got past Kolkata Knight Riders by seven wickets and jumped to the top of the table with their third win in a row.
Hosein made 16 not out and took one for 40 from his allotted four overs but Abhishek Sharma starred to give SRH their third win in eight matches in the contest at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Sharma, opening the bat, laid the platform with an aggressive 67 off 36 balls, and South Africa international Heinrich Klaasen provided the finishing touches with a brisk 53 off 27 balls to help SRH post a competitive 197 for six from their 20 overs after they chose to bat.
Mayank Markande then led from the front with the ball with an excellent spell of two for 20 from his allotted four overs, and the SRH attack survived blitzes of 59 off 35 balls from England international Phil Salt and 63 off 39 balls from Australia international Mitchell Marsh to break their three-match losing streak.
Russell banged two fours and three sixes in a typically explosive 34 from 19 balls and snatched one for 29 from three overs, while Narine did not bat and took one for 24 from three overs. But a momentum-shifting 51 off 24 balls coupled with supporting acts of 49 off 35 balls from Shubman Gill and 32 off 18 balls from David Miller helped the Titans chase down 180 after a collective bowling performance, led by India pacer Mohammed Shami, restricted KKR to 179 seven.
