IPL 2025: Hyderabad Sunrisers Send Lucknow Super Giants Packing with Dominating Six-Wicket Victory

Sunday witnessed the playoff war of the IPL 2025 intensify following Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) thrashing Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) comprehensively by six wickets at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium. Not only did the win strengthen SRH’s playoff hopes but also mathematically ruled out LSG from the playoff picture.

LSG, who were asked to bat, compiled a gritty 205/7 from 20 overs. The top-order was backed by excellent half-centuries by Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram, who laid the foundation with forceful paced knocks. Finisher Nicholas Pooran gave the punch at the end with a quick cameo that took LSG past the 200-run mark.

Despite the competitive combined score, LSG’s bowling line-up—depleted by injuries—was open to SRH’s free-scoring top order. Above all, Abhishek Sharma turned the game on its head in spectacular fashion. The big-hitting opener thrashed 59 off 20 balls, pounding boundaries with four fours and six monstrous sixes. His free-scoring early onslaught eased pressure from the chase and set the tone for SRH’s successful pursuit.

SRH chased the target easily, scoring 206/4 in 18.2 overs, and with 10 balls to spare. The other batsmen supplemented well to avoid a late hitch. This win pushed SRH further up the points table and made the race for the last two playoff spots more competitive.

In contrast, the loss deprived LSG of a quota-based path to the playoffs. They started brightly in the season but lost their way in the second half, courtesy largely of a bowling department devastated by injuries. Key pacers Mohsin Khan and Mayank Yadav were ruled out in the early part of the season, while others like Avesh Khan and Akash Deep battled poor form and fitness.

Captain Rishabh Pant, post-match, bemoaned the absence of important bowlers as a key reason for the team’s debacle. “We were confident about ourselves in the first half of the game, but injuries used to go for our combinations big-time,” Pant added. “We had to employ part-timers too frequently.”

Amidst the disappointment, there was one statistic to the credit of LSG’s Harshal Patel. He is the first IPL bowler to have achieved wickets in all three phases of an innings—Powerplay, Middle Overs, and Death Overs—throughout a season. His thinking bowler approach was among the few bright spots in LSG’s otherwise disappointing season.

This match was one of the decisive games of determining the playoff match. SRH are now well established with improved net run rate and confidence. Their aggressive strategy, fueled by young sources like Abhishek Sharma, has been at the heart of their turnaround in the latter part of the tournament.

With the league stage almost over, every point matters. While Sunrisers Hyderabad would be looking to find a fourth position, Lucknow Super Giants would now be hoping to rebuild and reassess for IPL 2026.