SRH vs RR, IPL 2025 Highlights: Sunrisers Hyderabad crush Rajasthan Royals to start their campaign with a bang

With four over to go, the chase has gotten tougher for Rajasthan. However, the fight is on. Shubham Dubey sends the ball into the stands in Cummins' first delivery. Hetmyer assists from the other side with 1s and 2s. The batters are struggling to find room for those big shots. Dubey hits two more of those to end the over. RR need 88 to win in 18 balls.

Beautifully struck by Jurel for a sixer. Not an ideal start Abhishek wanted. But in a chase so massive, big shots are needed. Jurel ends the over with a boundary at short fine. RR 108/3 (9)

Dhruv Jurel welcomes Pat Cummins with a sensational sixer into the stands. He tops with up with a boundary in deep square leg. And one more boundary. Though it was a missed catch by Cummins. With the powerplay now over, things will start to get difficult for Rajasthan at this run-rate. Jurel ends the over with a boundary. RR 77/3 (6)

Sanju Samson and Yashashwi Jaiswal are on the pitch and have started the massive run chase of 287 runs. The batters are facing ace Indian pacer Shami. Samson takes it on and hits for a Maximum in the first over. Rajasthan need more of those as the game progresses. And Samson tops it up with a boundary between point and cover point. And then comes another. A touch of class from Sanju Samson. RR 16/0 (1)

Now we are feeling bad for Archer. The pacer has been unable to control the run leaks. Top of it is Klaasen, who has hit three back-to-back boundaries. With the last boundary, Sunrisers cross 250-run mark. Kishan ends the over with a boundary. SRH 256/3 (18)

For the first time today, the off-side wide rule has been enforced under the IPL’s new Hawk-Eye-powered system. From this season onward, the age-old debate over wide balls is getting a tech upgrade!

The IPL has eliminated the subjectivity in wide calls by ensuring that the blue wide guideline moves with the batter. If a batter shuffles a foot outside off stump, the wide marker shifts accordingly. Hawk-Eye will automatically track both the batter’s movement and the guideline adjustment, leaving the TV umpire to make the final call based on clear data.

However, there are limits—the return crease stays fixed, and the new system won’t apply to leg-side wides.

Jofra Archer to Ishan Kishan and a top edge sends the ball away for a six. He tops it up with another sixer and his first half-century for the new franchise comes up in style. And this comes in just 25 balls. A wonderful knock by Kishan. Wait, there's more - Kishan hits third sixer of the over. This is definitely not a sweet welcome for Archer to the IPL. He missed last season. SRH 178/3 (13)

SRH scored 94 runs in the Powerplay. It's the fifth-highest powerplay total in the IPL so far. They truly are the boss of Powerplays. And Travis Head finishes scores half-century off 21 balls. And whose to stop this batter who is wreaking havoc on Rajasthan right from the first over. He is hitting shots in all parts of the park so far. An out of park maybe coming soon it seems. SRH 115/1 (8)

Jofra Archer vs Travis Head on the pitch right now. Head starts it with a boundary. And Travis Head tops it up with a massive sixer - 105 metres!!! Bowlers call him Travis 'Dread' for a reason after all. And comes another boundary. My oh my! It's carnage at the Powerplay right now. Archer bowls the next wide. But who can stop Head. He has hit another boundary on the fifth delivery. And he ends it with another boundary. NO WAY! SRH 78/1 (5)

Abhishek Sharma starts Farooqi's over with a boundary, followed by another boundary over the mid-off. And there comes a third boundary. A nightmare for bowlers for sure. The next ball is a full toss and umpires are testing the height of that delivery. Head couldn't stay back for long. He ends the over with a sixer. Another expensive over for Rajasthan. SRH 45/0 (3)

Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma are walking on the pitch. Rajasthan Royals has also entered the ground. Countdown ends and the game is on. Fazalhaq Farooqi throws the first over. On the screen cheering for Hyderabad is actor Daggubati Venkatesh.

On the field, first boundary comes from Sharma's bat. He powers it up with another boundary on the off-side. A decent first over but still 10 runs come off the over. SRH 10/0 (1)

Seven years after lifting the Under-19 World Cup under Rahul Dravid's guidance, Riyan Parag now finds himself leading Rajasthan Royals, this time with Dravid as the franchise's head coach. At just 23, he joins the league’s youngest-ever captains.

Parag steps in for Sanju Samson, who is still recovering from finger surgery. While Samson will feature purely as a batter as an Impact Player, Parag will take charge for RR’s first three matches in IPL 2025. From teenage prodigy to leading a franchise, it’s a full-circle moment for the young gun.

Rajasthan Royals’ decision to sign 13-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi didn’t just raise eyebrows—it made its way into a cheeky ad featuring MS Dhoni and Royals skipper Sanju Samson. “I hear you guys signed a 13-year-old? I had won an IPL title before he was born,” quips Dhoni. Samson, ever so quick on the draw, fires back: “He might also win an IPL title before you retire.” Touché.

Suryavanshi, the youngest Indian ever to land an IPL contract (₹1.1 crore with RR), is no ordinary teenager. A southpaw with a flair for destruction, he smashed a record-breaking 58-ball century—the fastest by an Indian in youth Tests—against Australia U-19s. He’s also stacked up two U-19 Asia Cup fifties and an unbeaten triple century in a Bihar U-19 tournament. A future superstar in the making? The Royals seem to think so—and they usually have an eye for talent.

Batting 1st: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Abhinav Manohar, Wiaan Mulder, Pat Cummins, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Rahul Chahar

Bowling 1st: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Wiaan Mulder, Pat Cummins, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Rahul Chahar, Jaydev Unadkat

Impact Player options: Simarjeet Singh, Jaydev Unadkat/ Abhinav Manohar, Sachin Baby, Atharva Taide, Adam Zampa

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) kick off their 2025 campaign at home against Rajasthan Royals (RR), and unsurprisingly, one number is dominating all conversations—300. Once an almost mythical figure in 50-over cricket, SRH’s explosive batting in 2024 has made it a very real possibility in just 20 overs. Achievable? Maybe. Chaseable? Well, in this era of fearless cricket, nothing seems off the table. Buckle up, because if SRH goes full throttle again, we might just witness history!