IPL 2013: Match 3: SH v PWI

Sunrisers Hyderabad 126 for 6 (Perera 30) beat Pune Warriors 104 (Steyn 3-11, Mishra 3-19) by 22 runs Sunrisers Hyderabad made a winning debut in the IPL as they defended a low score at their home ground on a slow, difficult pitch. Thisara Perera, Sunrisers' $675,000 acquisition, did not begin too badly for his new franchise, top-scoring with a quick 30, taking the first two Pune Warriors wickets and causing a run-out. Amit Mishra wasn't too far behind, his legbreaks leaving Warriors confounded on a helpful surface. Dale Steyn left the Warriors top order dazed with his outswingers and returned to blow away the lower order with three wickets in four balls. Not many would have given Sunrisers a chance when they almost sleepwalked their way to 126 after being put in, barring a brief effort to break free from Perera. Deccan Chargers, the franchise Sunrisers replaced, had an atrocious record at this ground, and Sunrisers appeared set to extend that in front of a lukewarm turnout. But they came out a different unit with the ball. Steyn, charged up as almost always, beat the Warriors openers repeatedly with quick outswingers. Ishant Sharma was accurate and testing, as he often is when he does not have to lead an attack. The wickets came Perera's way, though.   After running him fine for a boundary, Robin Uthappa tried repeating the stroke and went caught behind. Marlon Samuels gave the lone slip catching practice in Perera's next over, Kumar Sangakkara deserving credit for sticking with the fielder and the bowler.   Warriors' batting line-up stretched way down to No. 8 Mitchell Marsh, but it was to come unstuck as Mishra brought out his control and variations. Yuvraj Singh, on IPL comeback, walked down, and was easily beaten and stumped. Manish Pandey's struggle to put bat to ball ended with a mishit slog off Mishra, as the asking-rate started mounting.   Almost everything clicked for Sangakkara on the field. He needed young Ashish Reddy to bowl a decent 17th over, and the bowler responded by uprooting Ross Taylor's leg stump with a full delivery.   With 33 needed off three overs, Perera was to make another important contribution. Angelo Mathews, who came in at No. 7, smashed a full toss straight back at Perera, who stuck out his right hand, and the dangerous Marsh was caught short of his crease at the non-striker's end.   Warriors' lower order panicked against Steyn, trying to attack the fast bowler while their captain looked on helplessly from the other end, ruing the fact that his team left as many as seven deliveries unused. Sunrisers used up their quota when they batted, but weren't able to find any momentum. The top four got only starts, and it was down to Perera to breathe some life into a suffocating innings.   He began with consecutive fours off Rahul Sharma and slogged Marlon Samuels' darts for two more boundaries before mishitting an Ashok Dinda full toss in the 18th over. Perera's fall meant Sunrisers weren't able to finish well with the bat, but they were far more determined with the ball.     Pune Warriors won the toss and elected to field

Kumar Sangakkara spun the coin, Angelo Mathews called correctly, and asked his senior Sri Lanka team-mate to bat in the new franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad's debut IPL game. Mathews felt dew could be a factor later in the evening, while Sangakkara said he would have batted anyway. Sunrisers' forerunner, Deccan Chargers, had an exceedingly poor record at their home ground in Hyderabad, and local fans would hope for a bright beginning from the new franchise. Both Chargers and Pune Warriors brought up the rear in the previous IPL, and both sets of fans would be hoping for a much better season this time.   Sangakkara chose Sri Lanka allrounder and high-profile acquisition Thisara Perera right away, Dale Steyn and Cameron White taking their places as the other overseas players in the XI. Mathews went in with Ross Taylor, Mitchell Marsh and Marlon Samuels, with big signing Ajantha Mendis left out.   Warriors' Yuvraj Singh also returned to IPL auction after missing the previous season due to his cancer treatment. Along with Sunrisers, Under-19 World Cup winner Hanuma Vihari also made his IPL debut.   Sunrisers Hyderabad: Akshath Reddy, Parthiv Patel (wk), Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Cameron White, Hanuma Vihari, Thisara Perera, DB Ravi Teja, Amit Mishra, Ashish Reddy, Dale Steyn, Ishant Sharma   Pune Warriors: Robin Uthappa (wk), Manish Pandey, Ross Taylor, Yuvraj Singh, Marlon Samuels, Angelo Mathews (capt), Mitchell Marsh, Abhishek Nayar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Rahul Sharma