NEW DELHI: Sunrisers Hyderabad will clash with Kolkata Knight Riders in Sunday's Indian Premier League final after the Pat Cummins-led side beat Rajasthan Royals convincingly by 36 runs in the Qualifier 2 in Chennai on Friday.
After Hyderabad posted 175 for 9, bowlers stopped Royals at 139 for 7 to give themselves a chance to avenge their defeat by KKR in the first qualifier on Tuesday.
And all-rounder
Shahbaz Ahmed
, who came in as Impact Substitute, contributed with both bat and ball, powering the 2016 champions to the final.
After scoring a crucial 18 down the order, the left-arm spinner picked up three crucial wickets to derail Royals chase.
In the post-match chat Shahbaz said that he was really happy with his performance, pointing out that the surface also assisted in SRH's defense of 175.
"Captain and coach said that we'll use you according to the situation. My role is to play lower-order and since we had a collapse, I got a chance. When I was batting, I felt this wicket had something when Sandeep and Avesh were bowling. Felt there'll be purchase later.
"I am feeling proud to be MOTM in such a big match. The team environment has been relaxed. We will celebrate only after winning the final. For now, it's about relaxation," Shahbaz said.
Put into bat, Hyderabad could not quite accelerate in the final overs and posted a competitive total at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Trent Boult rattled Hyderabad with his three-wicket burst before Travis Head (34) and Rahul Tripathi (37) steadied the innings.
Heinrich Klaasen struck a breezy 50 down the order but the late flourish Hyderabad expected did not materialise.
Yashasvi Jaiswal (42) led Rajasthan's robust reply but their top order could not quite capitalise on it.
Dhruv Jurel smashed 56 off 35 balls but he did not get enough support from the other end.
Spinner Shahbaz (3-23) led Hyderabad's tidy bowling claiming 3-23, while all-rounder Abhishek Sharma also impressed claiming figures of 2-24.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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