Hyderabad, April 14 (NationPress) In a thrilling match, debutant bowlers Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain showcased their immense talent by collectively claiming eight wickets, leading Sunrisers Hyderabad to a decisive 53-run victory over Rajasthan Royals, the top team in the IPL 2026 standings, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Monday.

On a challenging pitch where some deliveries were unpredictable, captain Ishan Kishan dazzled with a remarkable innings of 91 runs off just 44 balls, featuring eight fours and six sixes, helping SRH to a formidable score of 216/6. Kishan's explosive performance included expert handling of full and wide deliveries, as well as powerful pulls and whips, marking his 19th IPL fifty.

However, it was Hinge’s outstanding bowling that stole the spotlight. After being overlooked as an impact player in his debut match against Punjab Kings, Hinge turned the tables with a historic performance, becoming the first bowler in IPL history to secure a three-wicket haul in his first over.

He dismantled the formidable RR top order, notably dismissing Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for a duck, finishing with impressive figures of 4-34. Meanwhile, Hussain, from Gopalganj, Bihar, delivered a stellar performance as well, taking 4-24 to bowl out RR for 159 in just 19 overs.

SRH's strategic decision to introduce two debutants in place of seasoned players Jaydev Unadkat and Harshal Patel proved to be a masterstroke, elevating them to fourth place on the points table with their second win in five matches.

On the very first delivery of his spell, Hinge achieved what established bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah and Josh Hazlewood couldn't throughout the season: dismissing Sooryavanshi early. The keeper, Salil Arora, caught a top-edge off Sooryavanshi's expansive pull, igniting celebrations among Hinge and the SRH squad.

This marked the beginning of a phenomenal spell for Hinge, who quickly followed up by having Dhruv Jurel bowled, and then taking Lhuan-dre Pretorius’s wicket with a catch at long leg. Hossain, the other debutant, also made his mark, claiming his first IPL wicket by dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal.

RR's troubles escalated as Hinge took out skipper Riyan Parag with an exquisite outswinger, leaving RR reeling with five wickets lost before the third over concluded.

As the match's outcome became increasingly clear, Ravindra Jadeja and Donovan Ferreira tried to stabilize RR's innings, aiming to protect their net run rate. They crossed the 49-run mark, averting the embarrassment of the lowest score in IPL history.

The pair reached a fifty partnership in just 35 balls, with Ferreira impressively scoring his maiden IPL half-century off 31 balls.

However, their 118-run partnership for the sixth wicket was interrupted when Hossain bowled Ferreira, while Jadeja was caught behind off Eshan Malinga. Hossain continued his dominance by dismissing both Jofra Archer and Ravi Bishnoi with successive slower deliveries, and Malinga wrapped up the innings by catching Tushar Deshpande.

Prior to the debutants' brilliant display, Archer had stunned the packed Uppal crowd by taking Abhishek Sharma's wicket on the first ball, marking Archer's fourth first-ball wicket in the IPL.

Following an unexpected floodlight failure, Kishan fell just short of a century, misplaying a pull that was caught by Jurel, while Klaasen was dismissed for 40. Nitish Reddy continued the aggressive batting, hitting several sixes, and Arora capped off the innings with a flurry of boundaries, taking SRH past the 200-run mark before Hinge and Hussain shone with their exceptional bowling.

Brief Scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad 216/6 in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 91, Heinrich Klaasen 40; Jofra Archer 2-37, Riyan Parag 1-5) beat Rajasthan Royals 159 in 19 overs (Donovan Ferreira 69, Ravindra Jadeja 45; Sakib Hussain 4-24, Praful Hinge 4-34) by 57 runs.