Praful Hinge and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)
New Delhi: Praful Hinge announced himself on the big stage by dismantling the top order of Rajasthan Royals and putting the run chase into complete disarray at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Monday.
The young pacer broke the backbone of RR’s batting by removing the top three batsmen for Ducks, delivering a dream spell in his debut over.Praful Hinge dismissed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (Golden Duck), Dhruv Jurel (Duck) and Lhuan-dre Pretorius (Duck) in a thrilling opening burst. In what sounds like a fairytale script, the Nagpur-born bowler became the first in IPL history to take three wickets at the start of an innings.Sunrisers Hyderabad, backed by skipper Ishan Kishan’s 44-ball 91, scored a blistering 216 for 6 before bowling Rajasthan Royals for 159 in 19 overs. The defeat marked RR’s first loss of the season.After receiving the Player of the Match award, Hinge looked emotional and revealed that he had always dreamed of dismissing Sooryavanshi off the first ball he bowled in the IPL.
“(I imagined such a debut?) I have thought about it. Last year, I wrote somewhere that when I play my first match, I will definitely take four or five wickets.
And I wanted to control the powerplay as much as possible. I believe in him. I don’t know about others, but I believe it. (On his journey) I started playing cricket when I was 13 years old. I didn’t even know what leather-ball cricket was at that time. When I was 13, I told my dad I wanted to join the club.
He refused several times saying I was too young. But somehow, things started from there. After that, I continued playing.
Standing at this point, it feels really good. I want to dedicate this award to my family. They made a lot of sacrifices for me. I just want to say that their hard work and sacrifices mean everything.The hinge is finished with 4/34 figures out of four sums.Sooryavanshi was outpaced on the first ball and the resulting top edge went straight up, allowing wicket-keeper Salil Arora to complete the simple catch.
Hinge then trapped Dhruv Jurel with a delivery that landed outside off and then came back in, taking an inside edge before hitting the stumps.
Pretorius tried to pass the ball but failed to clear Nitish Reddy’s deep backward shot, ending a historic opening that stunned the opposition.“The best was Suryavanshi’s first wicket, because he was in good form. I had already told some people that I would get him out off the first ball, either with a bouncer or some way.
I just wanted his wicket on the first ball. “That was the plan,” Hinge said.“Also, my bowling coach Varun bhai helped me a lot. I am grateful to everyone who supported me. (Injuries in the past) Everything is fine now. I want to thank MRF for taking good care of me. When I was there, Mr. Naveen, the physiotherapist, took care of me. Since I have reached this stage today, I want to thank them as well,” he added.With this win, Sunrisers Hyderabad have moved up to fourth place in the points table and will face Chennai Super Kings on April 18.