Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Who is Praful Hinge? That question quickly started trending after the 24-year-old pacer from Vidarbha rattled Rajasthan Royals’ top order in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s IPL 2026 clash at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. On debut, Hinge tore through the lineup, dismissing Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel and Lhuan-dre Pretorius – all for ducks – to leave RR in deep trouble.Handing Hinge his IPL debut turned out to be a masterstroke for Sunrisers Hyderabad. The young seamer, picked up for Rs 30 lakh at the IPL 2026 auction, had already built a solid reputation in domestic cricket. In 10 first-class matches, he had taken 27 wickets at an average of 26.7, showing his ability to bowl long, disciplined spells. Though relatively new to T20s, he had impressed in his limited opportunities, including a tidy outing alongside Umesh Yadav.Praful the destroyer: How the wickets fellHinge made an immediate impact.Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (duck):He bowled a hard-length delivery that rose slightly. Sooryavanshi tried to pull it aggressively but mistimed the shot. The ball went straight up in the air, and the wicketkeeper settled under it to complete an easy catch.Dhruv Jurel (duck):Hinge followed it up with a delivery outside off stump. Jurel tried to defend, but the ball came back in slightly, took the inside edge, and crashed into the stumps.Lhuan-dre Pretorius (duck):For his third wicket, Hinge bowled a fuller ball that swung away. Pretorius attempted to flick it but couldn’t keep it down. The ball went high in the air, and a fielder in the deep completed a comfortable catch.In the space of just one over, Hinge had reduced Rajasthan Royals to 1/3, announcing himself in stunning fashion on the IPL stage.
