After Sunrisers Hyderabad failed to chase down 207 runs against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at their home ground, former South African batsman Herschelle Gibbs criticized SRH opener Travis Head. Hyderabad’s batting collapsed as they lost six wickets in the first 10 overs. Destructive openers Head and Abhishek Sharma were dismissed early.
Sunrisers Hyderabad suffered their first defeat in five matches. In the previous fixture against DC at Arun Jaitley Stadium, SRH had scored 266 runs, with openers Head and Sharma joking about targeting 300 next time. However, batters struggled to play freely at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad.
Gibbs criticized Travis Head by arguing that successfully chasing 207 runs on a slow pitch is just as praiseworthy as scoring 300 runs in the first innings.
Gibbs’ cheeky remark reminded that chasing a challenging target on a slow pitch can be as impressive as amassing a massive first-innings score.
However, the Hyderabad pitch posed a tough challenge for SRH’s batting lineup, who struggled to get off the mark and match the required run rate. They ultimately lost by 35 runs.
Despite losing, Sunrisers Hyderabad are in third place in the standings. Meanwhile, Royal Challengers Bengaluru still sit at the bottom with just 4 points from 9 matches. RCB still have a chance to make a comeback if they can win in the remaining games.
