Suryakumar Yadav checks Abhishek Sharma’s pockets for chits, SRH opener gets out to Hardik Pandya in same over
India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav‘s playful nature and camaraderie with the rising Indian cricketers were on full display during the Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL 2025 match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday (April 17). Suryakumar checked SRH opener Abhishek Sharma‘s pockets for chits during the SRH innings, leaving those watching in splits.
After Abhishek got off to a positive start against MI, scoring 36 runs off 26 balls with six fours, captain Hardik Pandya decided to introduce himself into the attack. When he was marking his run-up, Surya walked up to Abhishek and asked the SRH opener if he was carrying a similar chit that made a lot of noise after his record-breaking century against the Punjab Kings.
Just to be sure, Surya checked Abhishek’s pockets, which turned out to be empty. The video of the incident was shared widely on various social media platforms.
After reaching his maiden IPL century off 40 balls in SRH’s last outing against PBKS, Abhishek brought out a chit from his pocket and showed it to the camera. “This one’s for the Orange Army,” it read.
It was Abhishek’s way of showing gratitude to the SRH fans, popularly known as the ‘Orange Army’. They have been showering their love unconditionally ever since the franchise remodelled its approach to an ultra-attacking style last year.
Abhishek was not in the best of form in the lead-up to the PBKS match. With a point to prove in front of SRH’s home crowd, the left-hander smashed the score by an Indian in the history of IPL (141 off 55 balls) to help SRH chase down 246 with 9 balls to spare.
On a different Wankhede pitch against MI, Abhishek did not get off to an absolute flyer but made sure SRH scored at a steady run rate. Surya checking his pockets for a chit, however, did not turn out to be a lucky charm for Abhishesk as the dashing opener was dismissed in the same Hardik Pandya over.
After hitting a boundary off the MI captain, Abhishek was caught in the deep while trying to make room and cut a short delivery for six.
SRH struggled to reach 162-5 on a slowish Wankhede pitch and Mumbai, which won the toss and elected to field, eased to 166-6 with 11 balls to spare for their third win in seven games. Hyderabad lies at No. 9 just ahead of last-place Chennai Super Kings with two wins and five defeats.