Chennai, May 18 (IANS) Dewald Brevis played a crucial knock of 44 runs as Chennai Super Kings posted 180/7 in 20 overs against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Match 63 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Monday.

Asked to bat first, CSK got off to a flying start. Wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson attacked from the very beginning, smashing Nitish Kumar Reddy for a six on the first ball of the innings. He followed it up with two boundaries in the same over as CSK collected 17 runs.

Samson continued his aggressive approach in the next over as well, hitting Praful Hinge for three consecutive fours. CSK were scoring at a rapid pace and looked in complete control during the Power play.

However, Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper Pat Cummins provided the first breakthrough for his side. Samson edged one behind while trying to continue the attack and departed after a quickfire 27 off just 13 balls, studded with four boundaries and a six.

Young batter Urvil Patel kept the momentum going for CSK by smashing Cummins for two sixes in the same over. But his stay at the crease was short-lived as Sakib Husain deceived him with a slower delivery and clean bowled him in the fifth over. Urvil scored 13 runs from eight deliveries.

With CSK losing two wickets inside the Power-play, captain Ruturaj Gaikwad shifted gears and focused on rebuilding the innings. He found good support from Kartik Sharma, who looked confident from the start and played some attractive shots.

Kartik attacked Praful Hinge in the eighth over, hitting two fours and a six, before smashing another maximum in the following over. The partnership helped CSK maintain a healthy run rate despite losing early wickets.

SRH once again turned to Cummins for a breakthrough, and the Australian pacer delivered in the 10th over. Kartik Sharma was trapped by a slower delivery outside off stump and got dismissed after scoring 32 runs from 19 balls, with the help of three fours and two sixes. At the halfway stage, CSK were 91/3.

Cummins struck again soon after, dismissing Gaikwad, who struggled to accelerate during his stay at the crease. The CSK skipper managed only 15 runs off 21 balls. With this wicket, Cummins also completed 200 wickets in T20 cricket.

After the dismissal of Gaikwad, Shivam Dube and Dewald Brevis steadied the innings with an important partnership. Brevis looked aggressive from the beginning and counterattacked the SRH bowlers. He took on Nitish Kumar Reddy in the 14th over, collecting 18 runs and helping CSK cross the 120-run mark.

Dube also started finding boundaries and hit a six off Eshan Malinga in the 15th over. Brevis continued his attacking display by hitting a four and a six off Cummins as CSK reached 144/4 after 16 overs.

The partnership was becoming dangerous for SRH before Eshan Malinga finally broke through in the 18th over. Brevis was clean bowled after a well-made 44 off 27 balls, an innings that included four sixes and two fours.

SRH struck another important blow in the following over when Sakib Husain dismissed Shivam Dube. Dube scored 26 runs from 23 balls, hitting three boundaries and one six.

In the final overs, Prashant Veer added some useful runs with a quick cameo of 11 as Chennai Super Kings crossed the 180-run mark and finished at 180/7 in their 20 overs.

For Sunrisers Hyderabad, Pat Cummins was the standout bowler with figures of 3/28 in four overs. Sakib Husain claimed two wickets, while Praful Hinge and Eshan Malinga picked up one wicket each.

Brief scores:

Chennai Super Kings 180/7 in 20 overs (Dewald Brevis 44, Sanju Samson 27, Shivam Dube 26; Pat Cummins 3-28, Sakib Hussain 2-34) against Sunrisers Hyderabad

–IANS

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