NEW DELHI: Two wins in a row and Sunrisers Hyderabad have surged into the top four of the IPL 2026 points table after registering a 10-run win against Chennai Super Kings at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Saturday.Malinga, Shivang lead SRH’s bowling chargeSri Lankan pacer Eshan Malinga’s pinpoint yorkers found perfect support in unheralded left-arm wrist spinner Shivang Kumar as Sunrisers Hyderabad edged past Chennai Super Kings by 10 runs in a gripping IPL thriller.Chasing 195, CSK finished at 184/8, largely due to Malinga (3/29 in 4 overs) and Shivang (1/18 in 3 overs), who executed brilliantly in the post-Powerplay overs.csk stumbleCSK needed only 84 runs in the last 10 overs — a gettable target in modern T20 cricket — but Malinga’s mix of yorkers, hard lengths and short balls kept them quiet, while Shivang extracted appreciable turn and bounce to trouble the batters.The defeat left CSK in seventh place, while SRH climbed to fourth in the 10-team table. CSK have not chased a 190-plus target in the last eight years.Hinge holds nerve at the deathCSK required 18 runs off the final over bowled by Praful Hinge, who had conceded more than 50 runs in his first three overs. However, the Vidarbha pacer held his nerve, conceding just seven runs and dismissing the dangerous Jamie Overton.Wickets and middle-order slowdownSanju Samson started with a first-ball six, but Nitish Reddy, having added a few yards of pace, struck with a hard-length delivery to dismiss him quickly.Ayush Mhatre (30 off 13 balls) continued his aggressive approach with a flurry of boundaries, but a hamstring injury affected his rhythm.A brilliant catch from Heinrich Klaasen ended his stay, while an out-of-form Ruturaj Gaikwad (19 off 12 balls) gloved a rising delivery from Malinga to wicketkeeper Salil Arora.At 66/3, Sarfaraz Khan (25 off 19 balls) and Matthew Short (34 off 30 balls) added 46 runs before Sarfaraz lost control on a flick off Malinga and was caught at deep mid-wicket.Dewald Brevis (0) played an irresponsible shot off Shivang Kumar and was caught in the deep. Short and Shivam Dube (21 off 16 balls) added another 35 runs, but at a slower rate.Malinga, Sakib Hussain (1/32) and Shivang were outstanding at the death, keeping CSK’s big hitters in check.Explosive start, middle-order collapseEarlier, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s batting unit lost momentum despite Abhishek Sharma’s explosive half-century, as Chennai Super Kings pacers Jamie Overton and Kamboj led a strong bowling effort to restrict the hosts to 194/9.CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad opted to bowl first, and once Abhishek (59 off 22 balls) raced to a 15-ball half-century, the decision seemed questionable.Powerplay twist changes momentumHowever, left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary (2/21 in 2 overs) struck twice in the final moments of the Powerplay, dismissing Travis Head (23 off 20 balls) and Ishan Kishan (0).In a flash, SRH went from 75/0 in 5.4 overs to 75/2 at the end of six overs, opening the door for CSK.Klaasen stands tall The post-Powerplay phase proved difficult for SRH, with only Heinrich Klaasen (59 off 39 balls) holding firm and guiding the total towards 200.Overton (3/37) and Kamboj (3/22) dominated the middle and death overs, ensuring the hosts could not fully capitalise.SRH lost four wickets in just 4.5 overs and slipped to 112/4 at the halfway mark, derailing what looked like a 220-plus total.Key moments and bowling brillianceSamson’s sharp awareness proved crucial as he successfully reviewed against Abhishek off an Overton short ball – a key turning point.Noor Ahmed (0/33 in 4 overs) supported Overton well with his variations, restricting scoring opportunities.Indian batsmen like Nitish Reddy (12) and uncapped players Aniket Verma and Salil Arora failed to accelerate, leaving Klaasen to do most of the scoring.Kamboj impressed with his wide yorkers from around the wicket, including the delivery that saw Klaasen play onto his stumps.Gurjapneet Singh (1/34 in 4 overs) also contributed with 12 dot balls, tightening the squeeze. SRH managed only 40 runs in the final five overs.
