Hyderabad, April 12 -- There are matches that begin at the toss, and then there are matches that begin at the first crack of the bat. This one, between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals, belongs firmly to the second category.
It is not so much a cricket match as it is a meeting of four left-handed men who believe restraint is a form of weakness.
Sunrisers Hyderabad arrive at their home ground with all the confidence of a man who has read too many good obituaries about his own batting lineup. Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, their opening pair, are not so much batsmen as they are arguments against patience. When they connect, the ball does not travel; it escapes.
Across the pitch stand Rajasthan Royals, unbeaten and slightly amused...