Abdul Samad Smashes Last-Ball Free Hit to Secure Incredible Victory for Sunrisers Hyderabad
A brilliant Buttler-Samson stand became a mere footnote as Abdul Samad scored the winning run with a last-ball six free hit into the seats.
Phillips is a quick learner and has an immediate impact, according to Moody.
Abhishek 55, Tripathi 47, and Chahal 4-29 helped Sunrisers Hyderabad defeat Rajasthan Royals 214 for 2 (Buttler 95, Samson 66) by four wickets.
When Rajasthan Royals thought they had won the game by holding Sunrisers Hyderabad to 214 runs and were about to celebrate, Sandeep Sharma’s last-ball wicket turned out to be a no-ball (called late by the third umpire). Sunrisers Hyderabad received the additional four runs required as Abdul Samad smoked a straight six off the free hit. The orange camp erupted in raucous jubilation as the pink-clad players and home supporters were speechless.
Nearly the whole chase, the Royals led the Sunrisers by a significant margin, with the asking rate increasing and wickets often falling in the closing stages. But Sunrisers persisted in retaliating with powerful blows. The most significant reversal occurred when Glenn Phillips, who replaced Harry Brook, hammered three sixes and a four to reduce it to 19 off eight when they needed 41 off 12. After falling on the following ball, the chase changed once more, and with Samad on strike, they required 17 runs from the final over to win.
Samad came very close to being caught twice in two balls. Obed McCoy first dropped him at short third, which allowed two runs to score, and then he smashed a six that just eluded Joe Root’s fingertips at long-on. With just five needed to win off the next ball and Samad finding long-on while attempting another straight six, Sandeep’s near-yorkers gave up just four of the following three, and McCoy hoisted his finger in delight. However, those grins soon faded since Sandeep had overstepped, and when he re-bowled the final ball—another attempted yorker—the length was slightly off. Samad finished Sunrisers’ heist with a successful straight six over the bowler’s head.
Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson put on a thrilling 138-run stand
The Royals will regret the two lost catches and a missed run-out opportunity that led to the futility of Sanju Samson’s undefeated 66 off 38 and Jos Buttler’s electrifying return to form with a 95 off 59. Royals are still in fourth place on the standings despite their third consecutive loss and fifth loss in six games, but RCB, Mumbai Indians, and Punjab Kings are all tied with them on 10 points, and each has a game left to play. Sunrisers moved up from last place and knocked Delhi Capitals back to later.
A quick start for SRH but not the fastest
Sunrisers were off to a good start with quick knocks from their top three after dropping Mayank Agarwal and Brook. In particular, against the seasoned Sandeep and R Ashwin, Anmolpreet Singh started finding the boundaries after opening with the in-form Abhishek Sharma. Abhishek also joined in, and with three fours from Sandeep in the fifth over, Sunrisers appeared to be headed for a solid powerplay finish. However, Yuzvendra Chahal caught Anmolpreet off a sweep for 33 runs, and the visitors finished the powerplay with a mediocre 52 for 1.
SRH appears to depart too soon after arriving.
The asking rate increased to almost 12 shortly after the powerplay ended, but Rahul Tripathi and Abhishek began their massive innings when they required 142 runs from 11 overs. Abhishek scored sixes off M. Ashwin and Tripathi before edging to short third for 55 and attempting another big shot. Tripathi began the innings with a six against M. Ashwin.
Samson gave M. Ashwin a third even though his first two scored 23. Even though alternative bowling choices were available, he leaked another 19, which kept Sunrisers in the game, with Heinrich Klaasen moving up to No. 4 with the equation at 98 off 42.
Glenn Phillips assumes control before Yuzvendra Chahal makes a move.
Samson then went to Yuzvendra Chahal, who struggled after being hit for a six and a four in his opening four balls of the game before taking out Klaasen for 26 off 12 balls. Tripathi received life when Samson dropped him down the leg side off McCoy with 57 to get from 24, and he cashed in with a six off the next ball. When SRH required 44 runs off of 18 deliveries in his final over, Chahal struck hard when Markram missed a reverse sweep, and Tripathi hit deep midwicket on the boundary.
Phillips was unaffected by the challenging equation of 41 from 12 or that he hadn’t batted in a match set in over a month. When Kuldip Yadav missed his yorkers at the start of the 19th, he blasted three sixes. He edged one for four before another twist resulted in Phillips’ dismissal, thanks to Shimron Hetmyer’s superb catch while rushing towards the boundary on the leg side.
Samad continued to go after the straight boundaries and eventually left Royals perplexed, with Sunrisers requiring 17 from the final over.
Yashasvi Jaiswal once again got off to a fast start.
After deciding to bat, the Royals witnessed Yashasvi Jaiswal maintain his regal form through willpower and good fortune. He hit the first ball just over mid-on for four runs, and on the fourth ball, he was in a position to be caught at fine leg, but rookie Vivrant Sharma snagged the ball incorrectly and allowed another four runs to be scored. Jaiswal smashed Marco Jansen and Bhuvneshwar Kumar for sixes while Buttler was still trying to find his flow before hitting Jansen for back-to-back fours in the fifth over.
When Jaiswal attempted to clear the short third off Jansen’s fastball, the extra bounce made it simple to catch, and Jaiswal was out for 35 off 18 runs.
Jos Buttler activates the switch.
After the ninth, Buttler was on 20 off 20, but Samson entered the game and immediately began scoring boundaries. When Mayank Markande bowled the ninth over, the Royals’ scoring pace increased even further, and Buttler, too, started to cut. Samson hit back-to-back sixes before Buttler finished the above with a pulled six to take the over for 21 total.
He used straight pulls and flamboyant drives off the spinners to reach fifty off 32 balls and maintain a run rate well over ten. As Buttler increased his score from 78 to 91 in the 17th over by hitting three fours in the cover zone off Bhuvneshwar, Markande recovered only to be blasted for three more sixes.
In the end, T Natarajan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar control the Royals.
Even though Samson hit his fifty off 33 balls and the 18th and 19th overs were laced with yorkers, T Natarajan and Bhuvneshwar bowled them for just 12 runs despite the bombardment of boundaries. They were accurate enough to account for Buttler being stranded in front by Bhuvneshwar’s scorching yorker as he crossed the pitch.
Samson ramped and guided two fours with a straight six in between in a last over that scored 17 runs because he anticipated more yorkers. In the end, the Royals would not have enough. Read more cricket news here at IPLWin India.
