Chennai, April 25 (NationPress) In a nail-biting finish, Kamindu Mendis (32*) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (19*) played pivotal roles in leading Sunrisers Hyderabad to a thrilling five-wicket win against Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday. This victory propelled SRH past Rajasthan Royals in the standings, securing them seventh place, while CSK's chances of advancing are nearly extinguished, having clinched only two wins from nine matches.

During their pursuit of 155 runs, SRH faced an early setback with Abhishek Sharma (0) dismissed on the second ball by Shardul Thakur. Travis Head (19) struggled to find his rhythm and was bowled by Anshul Kamboj. The team’s situation worsened as Heinrich Klassen attempted a big hit but ended up finding Deepak Hooda in the outfield.

Ishan Kishan (44) was a beacon of hope, forming a vital 36-run partnership with Aniket Verma. The duo took control of the game, with Verma hitting two sixes while Kishan consistently accumulated runs.

After hitting a six off Noor Ahmad, Kishan aimed to accelerate the scoring but was caught by Sam Curran, who managed to hold on despite a tough fall.

Ahmad struck again, igniting hope for CSK as Aniket, after scoring 12 runs, was caught by Deepak Hooda at long-off. Despite the tension with SRH at 106/5, Reddy and Mendis put together an unbroken 49-run partnership, securing SRH's first victory over CSK at this venue.

In the first innings, young sensation Ayush Mhatre continued his stellar season, hitting Pat Cummins, Mohammed Shami, and Jaydev Unadkat for six boundaries in the powerplay, laying a solid foundation despite losing Shaik Rasheed and Sam Curran early. Cummins saw Mhatre dismiss himself after a full-length delivery.

Ravindra Jadeja and Brevis tried to stabilize the innings, but Jadeja fell after hitting a six off Zeeshan Ansari, when Mendis bowled a slider that crashed into the stumps.

Brevis targeted Mendis in the subsequent over, thrilling the Chepauk crowd with three sixes before being taken down by Patel. Shivam Dube followed, caught by Sharma off Unadkat.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni (6), Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad (2), and Khaleel Ahmed (1*) could not contribute significantly, while Deepak Hooda (22) added valuable runs in the closing overs, including a six and a four, before getting out with just one ball left as CSK crumbled for 154 all out.

Match Summary:

Chennai Super Kings: 154 all out in 19.5 overs (Dewald Brevis 42, Ayush Mhatre 30; Harshal Patel 4-28, Pat Cummins 2-21, Jaydev Unadkat 2-21) lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad: 155/5 in 18.4 overs (Ishan Kishan 44, Kamindu Mendis 32; Noor Ahmad 2-42, Anshul Kamboj 1-1) by five wickets.