IPL 2016: MS Dhoni's Rising Pune Supergiants Begin Road to Recovery With Win Over Sunrisers Hyderabad

Rising Pune Supergiants brought their stuttering Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign back on track with a convincing 34-run win over hosts Sunrisers Hyderabad via Duckowrth Lewis method in a rain-affected match on Tuesday night.

Relishing favourable conditions, Supergiants restricted Sunrisers to a modest 118 for eight after a rain-delayed start and won the contest via Duckworth Lewis method at Rajiv Gandhi International stadium.

Supergiants were comfortably placed at 94 for three in their chase when rain came down for the second time, forcing suspension of play. The play never resumed and Supergiants were declared the winners.

It was the first win for Pune after four straight defeats and credit for the much-needed win went to their pace duo of Ashok Dinda (3/23) and Mitchell Marsh (2/14), who revelled under helpful conditions.

The sluggish conditions made the RPS' decision to bowl first more suitable. Hyderabad were never in contention after losing half the team at a score of 32.

The hosts owed their total to Dhawan, who struck a fighting unbeaten 56 that had two fours and a six.

Clinical Chase

Except for losing Ajinkya Rahane in the very first over, Supergiants were in complete control of the contest. Steve Smith and Faf Du Plessis went about their business calmly.

Comeback man Ashish Nehra and Mustafizur Rahman bowled well but Smith and Du Plessis were on song. They shared a 80-run stand that set up the easy chase.

Smith's unbeaten 46-run knock came off 30 balls and had seven boundaries while Du Plesiss hit 30 off 21 balls with three fours and two sixes.

The stand was broken by Moises Henriques when he had the South African caught behind. RPS skipper MS Dhoni promoted himself up the order and straight away smashed a four.

However, he did not last long, hitting a Nehra delivery straight to Aditya Tare. Immediately after Dhoni's dismissal, skied opened up again and play never resumed.

Despite the defeat, Hyderabad remained at number four in the table with six points while Supergiants rose one place to six with four points.

Hyderabad suffered their first defeat after three straight wins.