The Sunrisers Hyderabad’s stand-in skipper Bhuvneshwar Kumar has acknowledged that his team’s bowling was subpar during their 72-run loss against Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) opener.

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He remained optimistic, however, about the team’s batting prospects with the arrival of South African players Aiden Markram (the regular skipper) and Heinrich Klassen, who will join the team tomorrow after fulfilling international cricket commitments.

Rajasthan Royals (RR) began their 2023 IPL campaign with a resounding victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad, thanks to exceptional bowling performances from spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and pacer Trent Boult. The match took place at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday.

In the post-match presentation, Bhuvneshwar said, “We didn’t bowl well, but we can move on and improve from this first match of the season. With the South Africans joining the team, we’ll definitely have a stronger batting side.” He added that they shouldn’t be too worried about the pitch, as it was generally good for playing.

During the match, RR posted a total of 203/5 in 20 overs after being asked to bat first by SRH. Openers Jos Buttler (54 off 22 balls) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (54 off 37 balls) set the stage ablaze with an 85-run partnership in just 35 balls. Captain Sanju Samson led from the front, scoring 55 off 32 balls, while Shimron Hetmyer’s quickfire 22* helped RR cross the 200-run mark.

For SRH, T Natarajan claimed 2/23, Fazalhaq Farooqi took 2/41, and Umran Malik picked up one wicket. However, their chase of 204 runs never looked promising. Debutant Harry Brook (13) had a disappointing start, and while Abdul Samad scored 32 and Mayank Agarwal contributed 27, SRH ultimately reached only 131/8 in 20 overs, losing by 72 runs.

Chahal stood out among RR bowlers, taking 4/17, while Boult claimed 2/21. Holder and Ashwin each picked up a wicket as well. Buttler received the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his impressive batting performance.