Watch: A dramatic final over between Punjab Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024 ended in a two-run win for SRH after Ashutosh Sharma and Shashank Singh fell just short despite a an unbeaten 66-run partnership.
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PBKS were facing an uphill battle in their 183-run chase in Mohali, needing 67 runs from the last four overs of the innings with four wickets left. However, Shashank had other ideas and crashed the first two balls of Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s 17th over for back-to-back fours. Another four off the fifth delivery and two wides to close out the over meant 17 runs came from it. Shashank hit two more fours in the next over, bowled by Pat Cummins to pull PBKS back into the chase.
By the time Jaydev Unadkat came on to bowl the final over, Punjab Kings needed 29 to win, still a tall order. Facing up to the first delivery, Sharma slammed a half-tracker outside off towards Nitish Reddy on the midwicket boundary. Reddy jumped off the ground slightly to take what should have been a simple catch, but he ended up tipping the ball over the boundary for six.
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The next ball was a wide outside the off-side tramline followed by a repeat the next delivery. Unadkat managed to get down the second legal delivery in the slot on middle and off, which Ashutosh sliced down the ground for another six through the hands of a boundary fielder. Four runs came off the next two deliveries to leave 11 needed to win off the final two balls with Ashutosh on strike.
Unadkat took the pace off for the fifth ball of the over and pitched it short on the off side. Ashutosh left it alone and it was deemed wide of the tramline by the umpire, although it looked to be a marginal call. Ashutosh hit the re-bowl high in the air towards deep mid-wicket, giving what should have been an easy catch to Rahul Tripathi running in from the fence, but the ball bounced out of his hands and onto the ground.
Nevertheless, PBKS needed nine off the final ball, and Unadkat bowled a legal delivery. Despite a huge six down the ground from Shashank, thus, they fell two runs short.