New Delhi: When Ishan Kishan tossed the new ball to debutant Praful Hinge, few could have imagined what would happen next. The 24-year-old right-arm pacer produced a sensational opening over, which tore through Rajasthan Royals’ top order and turned the game around within minutes.Heng dismissed Vibhu Suryavanshi, Dhruv Jorrell and Luan Dre Pretorius – all for ducks – in a fiery spell that rattled RR. This was the first time in IPL history that a bowler took three wickets in the first over of an innings.There have been 32 instances of bowlers striking twice in the opening over, but not three times. The only such effort for Sunrisers Hyderabad was Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who took two wickets against the same opposition at the same venue in 2024.
Hinge’s spell also placed him in the elite list of bowlers who have taken four or more wickets within the Powerplay. His figures of 4/18 now sit alongside the remarkable spells of Ishant Sharma (5/12 in 2011), Shoaib Akhtar, Ajit Chandila, Dhol Kulkarni, Pete Cummins, Deepak Chahar and Mohammad Shami.
Who is Praful Hinge? ?
Young fast bowler Heng from Vidarbha was signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad for IPL 2026 auction for Rs 30 lakh. Prior to this breakthrough, he had quietly built his reputation in domestic cricket, particularly in the longer format.He made his first-class debut in October 2024 and was a regular in the Ranji Trophy, where he took 16 wickets in 11 innings. In total, in 10 first-class matches, he has taken 27 wickets at an average of 26.7 – figures that illustrate his ability to bowl with consistency and discipline.However, Hang was relatively inexperienced in T20 cricket. Prior to his IPL debut, he played just one match in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, returning figures of 1/23 against Andhra, sharing the new ball with Umesh Yadav.Despite limited exposure in the shortest format, SRH saw potential in the young pacer and brought him into a bowling unit that included experienced names like Pat Cummins, Harshal Patel and Jaydev Anadak. On debut, Heng not only justified this belief but also announced himself as a rising talent.
