Hyderabad's Head and Abhishek go berserk, post highest powerplay score in T20 history

It was an incredible display of power-hitting from the opening duo of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma in the IPL 2024 match against Delhi Capitals on Saturday, as they broke the record for the highest powerplay score in the league's history. The duo smashed 125 runs without a wicket in the first six overs of the game, as the DC players – as well as the dugout – was left stunned at the onslaught from the opening duo.

Travis Head, who had been in explosive touch ever since making his first appearance for the Sunrisers earlier this season against Mumbai Indians, smashed his half-century in just 16 deliveries; he scored 19 runs off the first over against Khaleel Ahmed, , and then hit spinner Lalit Yadav for two successive sixes and a four off the first four deliveries in the second over. The second over fetched 21 runs, as SRH raced to 40/0 in two overs.

Head, then, punished Anrich Nortje's as the South African bowler's horrid IPL 2024 season continued; the Australian batter hit four fours and a six off Nortje, scoring a total of 22 runs. In the final delivery of the over, Head smashed a six to reach his fifty, as SRH reached an incredible 62/0 by the end of the third over.

However, Abhishek Sharma then joined the party after Pant entrusted Lalit for a second over inside the Powerplay. He hit the left-arm spinner for three sixes in the over, racing to 21 off just six balls as SRH took 21 more runs off the fourth over. Kuldeep Yadav, then, was brought into the attack in a desperate attack to curb the flow of runs but he, too, was smashed mercilessly by Abhishek. The left-handed batter smashed three more sixes, reaching 40 in just 10 balls. Kuldeep conceded 20 as SRH breached the 100-run mark with an over to spare.

The final over, too, fetched 22 runs as Travis Head returned to boundary-hitting, hitting four successive fours off Mukesh Kumar before ending the over with a six.

SRH's 125/0 is now the highest score in powerplay in IPL's history, as the franchise broke KKR's 105-run record, which they achieved in 2017. Here's the list of the highest scores in powerplay:

125/0 - SRH vs DC, 2024*
105/0 - KKR vs RCB, 2017
100/2 - CSK vs PBKS, 2014
90/0 - CSK vs MI, 2015
88/1 - KKR vs DC, 2024*

The Sunrisers have followed the aggressive template throughout the 2024 season so far; while they smashed the record for the highest total in IPL history twice in this edition; they broke RCB's 263-run record last month, smashing 272 against Mumbai Indians. 

Against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru earlier this week, they toppled their own score, scoring 288/3 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.