Abhishek Sharma Despite Sunrisers Hyderabad’s dominant performance against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, they found themselves in the spotlight for the wrong reason. The all-rounder has been fined 25 percent of his match fee and given one demerit point for violating the IPL’s code of conduct during Thursday’s clash. Abhishek pleaded guilty to a Level 1 offense under Article 2.3 and accepted the ban imposed by the match referee. According to IPL Rules, decisions on Level 1 violations are final and binding. The disciplinary action took place on a night when SRH was otherwise clinical in the departments. Heinrich Klassen He opened the innings with a 35-ball 52, taking his team to 226/8 after coming in to bat. SRH’s innings was built on an explosive start by Travis Head and Abhishek, who put on an opening stand of 82 runs in just 34 balls. Abhishek himself scored 48 off 21 balls and took on the KKR spinners with intent. However, a flurry of middle-order saw SRH lose momentum briefly while Claesin and Nitish Kumar Reddy steadied things with a crucial 82-run partnership, ensuring the total remained out of KKR’s reach. In response, the much talked about KKR batting line-up failed to click. Ajinkya Rahane Struggled at the top again, while Angkarsh Raghuvanshi’s fluent 52 lacked support at the other end. A string of poor partnerships and costly run-outs derailed the chase as KKR were bundled out for 161 in just 16 overs. SRH’s bowling unit shared the spoils with him. Jay Dev AnadaktEhsan Malinga and Nitish Kumar Reddy are getting major hits. Despite Blessing Mazarbani’s four-wicket haul, KKR never recovered from their chaotic middle phase. While SRH celebrated a convincing 65-run victory to return to winning ways, Abhishek’s penalty put a small dent in an otherwise impressive outing for the young all-rounder.
