HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Nicholas Pooran smashed an unbeaten 44 off just 13 balls as Lucknow Super Giants gained two crucial points with a seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League on Saturday.
Hyderabad’s miserable home run continued after Lucknow cruised to 185-3 in 19.2 overs with Pooran smacking four sixes and three fours.
Prerak Mankad (64 not out) hit his first half-century, but it was Pooran’s late counter-attack in the death overs that handed Hyderabad its fifth home loss this season.
Heinrich Klaasen (47) and Abdul Samad (37 not out) earlier lifted Hyderabad's total to 182-6 after captain Krunal Pandya (2-24) accounted for the key wickets of Aiden Markram and Glenn Phillips off successive deliveries in the middle overs.
Lucknow broke into the top four with 13 points. Hyderabad has eight points from 11 games.
Lucknow's top-order got strangled on a slow surface and despite Marcus Stoinis (40) and Mankad featuring in a 73-run third-wicket stand the asking rate reached 14 an over off the last five overs.
Stoinis tried to rally by hitting successive sixes against part-time left-arm spinner Abhishek Sharma in the 16th over before he got holed out in the deep off the third delivery.
Pooran took control by lofting Sharma for three straight sixes off the first three balls he faced and then raised the victory with a flicked boundary against Fazalhaq Farooqi to fine leg in the final over.
“We spoke at the break, we felt we needed sixes to win the game,” Pooran said. “Once a spinner came in, we targeted him. Happy to walk in and hit sixes anytime … T20 is a batsmen’s game, and it is important to take risks.”
Earlier, Klaasen hit three sixes and three fours and Samad blazed four sixes to provide Hyderabad late acceleration after Pandya had Markram stumped off a brilliant delivery that shaped away from the right-hander before pegging back the off stump of Phillips off the first ball.
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