7:caption
The match no. 49 of IPL 2021 began in the usual disappointing fashion for Sunrisers Hyderabad, much to the anguish of all their fans. After opting to bat first against Kolkata Knight Riders, the misery started in the very first over when Tim Southee dismissed Wriddhiman Saha. Soon after, Jason Roy was also sent back to the pavilion and all the hopes were on the shoulders of captain Kane once again.
The charismatic Kiwi skipper played some gorgeous shots and really unsettled KKR with his counter-attacking approach. He smashed 18 runs off the final over of the powerplay being bowled by Shivam Mavi and suddenly the recovery for SRH had kicked off with their captain looking in sensation touch. He was looking set to play a big knock but it was not to be, courtesy some heroics from Shakib Al Hasan.
Williamson dismissed on 26 post Shakib's moment of brilliance
After the end of powerplay, Eoin Morgan introduced Shakib Al Hasan, who was playing his first match of UAE leg, into the attack. The left-arm spinner started off really well and the SRH batsmen were looking for a few quick singles to keep the momentum going. On the 5th delivery of the over, Kane Williamson defended the ball and called for a single and received a positive response from his partner Priyam Garg.
Although there was no misunderstanding between the duo, it was still a risky run as the ball went quite close to the bowler. As Williamson sprinted, Shakib was also quick to react as he went towards the ball and threw the ball rapidly towards the non-striker's end. The ball hit the stumps directly and it looked a very close call with the SRH skipper making a valiant attempt to reach the crease.
The replays confirmed that Williamson was short by a couple of inches and KKR got the much-needed breakthrough in Dubai.