Australia's Travis Head whacks 39-ball century as Sunrisers Hyderabad shatter IPL record
Travis Head lifted Sunrisers Hyderabad to a record IPL total of 3-287, defeating Royal Challengers Bengaluru by only 25 runs on Monday night.
The dynamic Australian star blasted 102 off 41 balls, with his century coming off just 39, making it the the fourth-fastest ton in the tournament's storied history.
Head opened the batting and hit nine fours and eight sixes, with No.3 batter Heinrich Klaasen smashing another seven maximums en route to a quickfire 67.
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The 30-year-old emulated Chris Gayle with his celebration, placing his helmet on top of his bat as he saluted the crowd.
Sunrisers Hyderabad's Travis Head celebrates scoring a century during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Royal Challengers Bangaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Bengaluru, India, Monday, April 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Kashif Masood) AP
In the run chase, Bengaluru looked like it was crashing to a heavy defeat at 6-181 in the 15th over, until Dinesh Karthik plundered 83 off 35 balls to finish 7-262 after 20 overs.
The aggregate of 549 runs was the highest in IPL history.
Head’s blistering century included eight sixes and nine fours. The Australian left-hander pounded the fast bowlers, notably Lockie Ferguson (2-52), who had a forgetful first game of the season as Bengaluru’s ploy not to go with a specialist spinner backfired.
Elsewhere in the T20 competition, young gun Jake Fraser-McGurk scored a half-century on his IPL debut as Delhi Capitals beat Lucknow Super Giants by six wickets.
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The 22-year old Victorian smacked 55 runs off only 35 balls, including five sixes, as Delhi chased down Lucknow's 7-167 with two overs to spare.
Fraser-McGurk has continued his stellar rise in the shortest form of the game, which included a debut for Australia against the West Indies over the summer.
