Published: April 24, 2026 at 4:15 pm
It was a dream IPL debut for Sunrisers Hyderabad’s young fast bowler Praful Hinge who created history by becoming the first bowler to take three wickets in his first over. Praful’s stupendous effort came against Rajasthan Royals, who have one of the most explosive opening pair in young Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Unperturbed by reputations, Praful bowled an incisive spell which wrecked the Royals’ batting as Sunrisers romped to an easy victory at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
Praful’s triple strike in the first over decimates Rajasthan Royals as Sunrisers win by 57 runs
Speaking on JioStar Press Room, Praful shared his thoughts about bowling the first over in the IPL and that too against the strong Rajasthan Royals’ batters. “I wasn’t thinking anything specific. I just tried to get the crowd out of my head and stay as calm as possible. The way I bowled in practice, imagining pressure situations, it was about executing those same things in the match. It felt really good after I was able to do all of that,” Praful said.
What were his plans against Sooryavanshi? “I played an Under-23 game against him and got him out with a bouncer there as well. So, I thought that if I bowl a bouncer, he would look to go after me, like he is doing with every bowler at the moment. I wanted to test him again with the bouncer. He tried to hit it but didn’t time it.
Going forward, my only manifestation is to make the team win. Winning the trophy is the main focus, but we don’t think too far ahead, says Praful Hinge. Pics: BCCI
“In the meeting, we had discussed him. I shared my point of view first, then the bowling coach added his inputs. I wanted to bowl to him from round the wicket, but he asked me to go over the wicket for one ball, and I got him out on that very ball. So, both of us were very happy,” Praful said.
On preparing against big hitters by bowling to the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen in the nets, he said: “They try to hit every single ball, that’s their playing style, and our team is structured in a way that we have to score big in every match. Even in the nets, they try to put every bowler under pressure, and we bowlers also treat it like a match. We put ourselves in situations where we think, ‘I am bowling to Ishan Kishan, Abhishek, or Klaasen.’ I try to give my best, and they also give their 100 per cent. They will try to hit me for a six, and I try to execute my best ball.
Praful’s first interaction with Cummins
On his first interaction with his idol Pat Cummins, he said: “When he came into the camp for the first time, I was very happy because I was seeing him live, face to face, for the first time. I told him, ‘Pat, I am your big fan.’ He responded, ‘Oh, nice, good to hear.’ I told him that since I started playing cricket, I have followed his bowling, watched all his videos, and observed what he does in Test matches, following every ball. Whatever he does in terms of bowling and routines, I try to learn from that. He said, ‘Great, let’s keep working together. When you are bowling, I will be there and help you out.’ That gave me huge encouragement.”
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On his manifestation of taking 3-4 wickets in one game and the main goal, he said: “I had written it down that I would take 3-4 wickets in a match, but I didn’t know it would happen in my debut match itself, so I am very grateful for that. I believe in manifestation, that things like this do happen. I went in thinking I would just enjoy myself, and I am glad it turned out well. Going forward, my only manifestation is to make the team win. Winning the trophy is the main focus, but we don’t think too far ahead. We go one game at a time, plan for each match, perform well, and not think too much about the result. We want to dominate every team and prepare well for each and every opposition player.”
