IPL 2024: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians, 8th Match - Who Said What?

Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by 31 runs in a high-scoring affair at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. It was raining sixes right from the beginning as multiple records were broken in the match, including the most runs by a team in the history of IPL. This was also the first time when 500 runs were scored in an IPL match.

Notably, batting first, Travis Head gave a dream start to the hosts. The Australia international smacked 62 runs off 24 deliveries and after his dismissal, Abhishek Sharma took care of the business as he registered the fastest half-century by a SRH batter in IPL history. Later, Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen wreaked havoc in Hyderabad, as they put up a partnership of 116 runs. Courtesy of Markram’s 42* and Klaasen’s 80* runs off 34 deliveries, SRH posted 277 runs in the first innings.

When it came to the chase, Mumbai were at it from the word go. Ishan Kishan gave the visitors a flying start and following which, Rohit Sharma kept up with the momentum. Later, Tilak Varma walked the walk and made 64 runs off 34 deliveries but couldn’t capitalise on the start. Naman Dhir too played well but things started to get difficult after their dismissals. Skipper Hardik Pandya struggled big time while Pat Cummins was incredible on a deck, which was tailor-made for the batters.

Also Read - Heinrich Klaasen's mighty power leaves Hardik Pandya stunned

Courtesy of Tim David’s blistering 42* runs off 22 deliveries, MI ended up scoring 246 runs, which seems to be unbelievable for a losing cause.

1. It’s a batter’s game

It was established a long time ago that T20 cricket is a batter’s game. If one needs an example of that, this is probably the game. A total of 523 runs were scored in Hyderabad, which is the most in a match in IPL. Travis Head started the show, which Tim David finished but unfortunately on a losing cause. Nevertheless, it was completely entertaining from start to finish.

2. Heinrich Klaasen, the best T20 batter?

What is that Heinrich Klaasen cannot do with the bat? Against KKR, he showed his class and continued with the momentum against SRH. He smacked sixes for fun in Hyderabad, which should give the South Africa international a lot of confidence for the remainder of the season. He is currently the Orange Cap holder and SRH management might just push him ahead in the batting order.

3. Hardik Pandya, Mumbai Indians - what’s going on?

Mumbai Indians suffered back-to-back defeats in IPL 2024. There’s some serious issue in the bowling department that the team needs to address as they lacked variety towards the end. Bumrah seems to be a one-man army, which is concerning. When it comes to Hardik, his form is concerning as well, and if he doesn’t improve, Hardik’s spot in the T20 World Cup might be under threat, especially with Shivam Dube in some terrific form.

Losing skipper Hardik Pandya said:

Not really (thought SRH would score 277 at the toss). Wicket was good, 277 no matter how bad or good you bowl, if the opposition has to score that much, they have batted well. They (the bowlers) were good, it was tough out there, almost 500 runs were scored and the wicket was helping the batters, we could have done a few things here and there, but having said that, we have a young bowling attack and we will learn. If the ball goes this many times into the crowd, you will need time to get the overs done. Everyone (the batters) looked good and it is just a matter of time before we put things right. He (Kwena Maphaka) was fantastic, coming into his first game and getting overwhelmed, he was alright and backed his skillset, just needs some game time.

Winning skipper Pat Cummins said:

That was insane. The ball was really pinging around. Not until we bowled, it got a bit too close for comfort. They found a boundary whenever they needed it, but we finished it off well. Really impressive, in IPL you play with a lot of pressure but he plays with great freedom. You never play for 270, but we wanted to be positive and be aggressive, take the game on. It was a good wicket, so we have to suck it up knowing we would go for a few boundaries. What's important is to have clear plans with the ball. Amazing atmosphere in the ground, enjoyed playing here, was incredibly loud.

POTM Abhishek Sharma said:

I said in the previous interview too, the domestic season gives us a lot of confidence. The message for the batters is simple - go out and express yourself. The plan was to attack, I enjoyed batting with Head, he's one of my favourite batters, I admire him. He told me to go for it if it was in my zone. I'm happy to be getting my chances, doesn't matter what position I'm playing. I had a chance to talk to Brian Lara last night, that helped me massively. I would rather bowl more in practice than bat, trying my best with bowling as well.