In the final league match of IPL 2025, Sunrisers Hyderabad thrashed Kolkata Knight Riders by a massive 110 runs in Delhi. The star of the night was Heinrich Klaasen, who remained unbeaten on 105 off just 39 balls, helping SRH post a mammoth total of 278—the third-highest score in IPL history. This win also helped Hyderabad take sweet revenge for their IPL 2024 final loss to KKR.
SRH won the toss and chose to bat first. Though the first over went quietly with just two runs, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma exploded after that. They took on Kolkata’s bowlers right from the second over and piled on 79 runs during the powerplay. After Abhishek got out, Klaasen walked in and made an instant impact by smashing a six on his first ball.
Klaasen was in top form, reaching his fifty in just 17 balls and later bringing up his century in style with a six in the 18th over. He got good support from Ishan Kishan, who scored 28 off 20 balls, while Aniket Verma chipped in with a quick cameo at the end to push SRH to an enormous total of 278.
Klaasen was in top form, reaching his fifty in just 17 balls and later bringing up his century in style with a six in the 18th over. He got good support from Ishan Kishan, who scored 28 off 20 balls, while Aniket Verma chipped in with a quick cameo at the end to push SRH to an enormous total of 278.
Chasing such a huge score, Kolkata started positively with Sunil Narine hitting a couple of sixes in the first over. But once he was dismissed for 31 off 16, KKR’s innings collapsed. Key batters like Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, and Quinton de Kock couldn’t contribute much. SRH bowlers Harsh Dubey, Eshan Malinga, and Jaydev Unadkat shared three wickets each to bowl out KKR for 168.
This win gave Hyderabad a powerful finish to their rollercoaster season. Players like Klaasen, Head, and Abhishek showed why they are the backbone of this team. On the other hand, KKR’s disappointing campaign ended on a sour note. After winning the title last year, they failed to perform consistently this season.
Kolkata will now have to rethink their strategy and possibly make some big changes ahead of the next season. For Hyderabad, sticking with their core squad seems to be the way forward.