'Best overseas player this IPL' - Twitter bows down to Heinrich Klaasen after trailblazing century
Klaasen's 49-ball century propelled the home side to a competitive total against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Hyderabad.
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Sunrisers Hyderabad, playing for their pride in front of their home crowd, made a terrific start to the contest against Royal Challengers Bangalore, thanks to Heinrich Klaasen's marauding knock. The South African wicketkeeper-batter continued his purple patch in IPL 2023, registering a majestic ton, his first in the competition.
The Orange Army got off to sedated start after their sixth different opening combination of the season, Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi, negated the RCB pacers valiantly. However, both batters fell prey to RCB's star Kiwi all-rounder Michael Bracewell in the fifth over of the powerplay.
Heinrich Klaasen, who was promoted up the batting order, finally, hit the ground running instantly, dispatching Shahbaz Ahmed for three boundaries in his first over of the match. While his national skipper, Aiden Markram, took a cautious approach in the middle, Klaasen piled the pressure on the bowlers with his aggressive strokeplay.
The middle-order star, who is renowned for his remarkable ability to play spin bowling, lived up to his reputation after breaching the 50-run mark in just 24 deliveries. While Markram's funky attempt ended the duo's 76-run stand for the third wicket, the dasher from Pretoria continued his assault on the RCB bowlers to register his highest total in IPL.
Klaasen roars in delight after a magnificent batting display
Although he did not spare any bowler during his sensational power-hitting display, he took a liking to left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed, dispatching the Indian spinner for two consecutive sixes in the 17th over. Under-fire English superstar Harry Brook provided valiant support from the other end, showing glimpses of his much-talked-about talent.
However, the Proteas star wasn't to be upended on the day as he smashed a towering six off Harshal Patel's bowling in the penultimate over of the innings to register a glorious maiden IPL century, becoming the second SRH batter to breach the three-figure mark this season. He roared in delight after reaching the landmark before hugging Harry Brook, the other centurion for SRH in IPL 2023.
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