Sunrisers Hyderabad ended Rajasthan Royals' unbeaten start to IPL 2026 with a 57-run victory at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad and the man who made it happen was a 24-year-old pacer from Vidarbha who most people had never heard of before Monday night. Praful Hinge, picked up for Rs 30 lakh at the IPL 2026 auction, took 4 for 34 on debut and won the Player of the Match award. By the end of the evening, his name was trending across the country. Hinge was actually set to debut in SRH's previous game against the Punjab Kings, but the management reportedly pulled back at the last moment. On Star Sports, commentators revealed that the call to hold him back was a deliberate one. Monday night was when they finally backed him and the lad repaid that trust within the first over he bowled.
The Triple-Wicket Over That Dismantled RR
Hinge's first over was one of the most devastating debut spells in IPL history we can easily say. He dismissed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi who is in red-hot form, Dhruv Jurel and Lhuan-dre Pretorius- all for ducks, to reduce Rajasthan Royals to 1 for 3 inside the first over.
Three different deliveries, Three Different Dismissals
Sooryavanshi attempted to pull a hard-length ball that rose sharply, mistimed it completely and the wicketkeeper took a straightforward catch. Jurel tried to defend one outside off stump, the ball came back in, took the inside edge and crashed into the stumps. Pretorius faced a fuller delivery that swung away, attempted a flick, could not keep it down and a fielder in the deep held on comfortably. The Rajasthan dressing room, which had been the most settled in the tournament through four games, suddenly looked a very different place. Hinge finished with 4 for 34 across his spell, figures that gonna now set a new benchmark for IPL debutants in terms of impact on a top-order batting lineup.
But Who Is Praful Hinge?
The short answer is: a bowler who has been building quietly toward exactly this kind of moment. The 24-year old pacer has taken 27 wickets in 10 first-class matches at an average of 26.7, showing the ability to bowl long, disciplined spells at the highest domestic level. He has reportedly trained at the MRF Pace Academy under Varun Aaronm, who is now SRH's bowling coach, which explains the connection and has also reportedly spent time in Australia working with Oz star pacer Josh Hazlewood. He comes from a humble background in Vidarbha and the Rs 30 lakh price tag at the auction now looks like one of the steals of the entire IPL 2026 auction.
Sakib Hussain Completes The Damage
Supporting Hinge from the other end was another debutant, 21-year-old Sakib Hussain, who the commentators quickly labelled the Bihar Express for good reason. Hussain consistently clocked above 145 kph and was responsible for breaking the only significant resistance RR could master a 100-run partnership between Donovan Ferreira and Ravindra Jadeja. Ferreira scored 69 before Hussain dismissed him with a clinical slower ball. Hussain then cleaned up the tail, removing Jofra Archer and Ravi Bishnoi, to finish with 4 for 24. Two debutant or near-debutant pacers combining for 8 wickets between them is not something the IPL sees often.
Apart from that, Rajasthan's Jadeja fought hard for his 45, but the target was always going to be beyond a side bowled out for a low total against that kind of pace. RR remain top of the points table despite the defeat. SRH, on the other hand, move up to fourth and suddenly look like a completely different side now that their pace attack is firing together.