Temperatures soared on the pitch during a boundary-fueled game 61 of IPL 2025 in Lucknow, where Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) became the first team to chase over 200 at the venue and in the process eliminate the home team from the playoffs race.
Blazing half-centuries from the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) openers were not enough to keep the franchise in contention for place in the IPL playoffs, and SRH passed their target of 206 with six wickets and ten balls to spare. Leading the way was Abhishek Sharma with 59 off 20 balls, and his heated response to being dismissed by Digvesh Rathi proved a focal point in the result, as well as afterwards, with cameras showing Abhishek having further words with the bowler who has previously been found guilty of aggressive and undisciplined behavior.
Mitchell Marsh slammed four sixes in his innings of 65 off 39 balls, adding 115 for the first wicket in 10.3 overs with South African Aiden Markram, who scored 61 from 38 deliveries. But once Marsh was dismissed, the LSG innings lost steam to end on 205/7 after 20 overs.
Vital to this passage was the dot-ball count and keeping Nicholas Pooran to 45 off 26 balls, around another failure from LSG’s captain Rishabh Pant. Promoting himself to one-down in Pooran’s customary spot, Pant made 7 to extend his abysmal season tally to 135 runs from 11 innings at an average of 12 and strike-rate of 100.
Riding on vital contributions throughout the order, SRH hacked away at their target and ended up taking their opponents out of the playoffs race. Abhishek’s 59 featured four fours and six sixes in another audacious takedown inside the Powerplay, and then the most expensive seventh over in IPL history as Ravi Bishnoi went for 27 including four successive sixes.
Boosted by Abhishek’s innings, SRH scored 72 off the Powerplay and crossed 100 in the eighth over. Abhishek’s dismissal to the rookie spinner Rathi prompted the bowler to break out his customary notebook celebration, which this time included a dismissive gesture to the batsman. Seeing this, Abhishek turned around and responded to Rathi which forced the on-field umpire Michael Gough to separate the two players.
Ishan Kishan weighed in with 35 off 28 balls, Heinrich Klaasen thumped 47 off 28 and Kamindu Mendis retired hurt after scoring 32 as SRH finished off their chase.
