Two names stood out in the game between SRH and RR. Both were debutants in Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain, with Sakib coming in as an Impact Player. There were sceptics as to how both fare with the ball and whether they will wilt under pressure. But what followed was something sensational as they blew the RR top order away in 18 balls, virtually sealing the match. It was something that was unbelievable to watch for all of us.
Praful Hinge was the main destroyer as he ripped apart the batting of RR by getting three wickets in the over, and added another later on as his 4 wickets came inside the powerplay. Sakib, on the other hand, picked up one inside the power play and came back in the middle and end phase after a good partnership was formed to add more wickets to his tally. Both the speedsters who made their debuts last night picked up 4 wickets apiece and 8 between them to dismantle RR for good.
Praful Hinge: The Wonder Boy from Vidarbha.Â
Praful Hinge was born on 18th January 2022 in Nagpur, Maharashtra. He grew up in a strong cricketing environment in Vidarbha. His initial intention and wants were to be a batter and not a bowler. But the turning point came when his father encouraged him to switch to fast bowling which really changed his career path completely.
Praful faced a major setback early on as his bowling action was reported as illegal. He had to rebuild his action from scratch through rigorous training and discipline. This phase was crucial to his story as it showed the tremendous persistence and technical growth that he needed.
Praful represents Vidarbha in Indian domestic cricket and joined the Vidarbha Cricket Association academy at the tender age of 16. He built his reputation mainly in red-ball first-class cricket, where he took 27 wickets in 10 matches. He made his Ranji Trophy debut in 2024 and was part of teams winning the Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2025-26. He was also known as hard working, a hit-the-deck seamer and not a T20 specialist.
Praful had very little experience and was almost an unknown in the T20 format. He was signed by SRH in IPL 2026, where he was a relatively uncapped, low-profile domestic bowler and not a big game prospect. He is known for a strong work ethic and his ability to overcome setbacks. He even revealed that he had written down his dream of success and manifestation before achieving it. Praful is a classic example of a late-rising, hard-earned success story.
Sakib Hussain: The Wonder kid from Bihar.Â
Sakib Hussain is a young Indian fast bowler from Bihar who has steadily risen through domestic cricket and youth-level tournaments to earn attention in the IPL. His journey is inspiring especially because he comes from a region that hasn’t traditionally produced many top-level cricketers.
Sakib Hussain was born on December 2nd 2003, in Gopalganj, Bihar. He grew up in a modest background where cricket infrastructure was limited. He developed his passion for fast bowling playing tennis ball cricket in local grounds. Like many cricketers from smaller towns, his early training lacked facilities, but his raw pace stood out.
Bihar only recently returned to India’s domestic circuit after years of absence and so exposure and opportunities were limited compared to bigger states. Sakib had to travel outside Bihar for better coaching and work hard to get noticed in age-group cricket. His persistence pad off when he started performing in U-19 tournaments, catching the selectors’ eyes.
Sakib represented India U-19 set-up and was part of the squad around the 2022U-19 World Cup cycle. He is known for express pace and his ability to generate bounce and have an aggressive fast bowling mindset stood out. He plays domestic cricket for Bihar, becoming one of their key pace prospects.
Sakib gained national attention when picked by KKR in the IPL in the past. His selection itself was significant as few players from Bihar make it to the IPL and he is seen as a long-term pace investment. Though very early in this IPL career, being in that set-up and gives him exposure to top level coaching and players. He is a right-arm fast bowler. He relies on natural pace and hard lengths and has the ability to trouble batters with bounce. He is still developing control and consistency, which is typical for young fast bowlers.
Sakib Hussain’s journey is inspiring because he comes from a non-traditional cricketing state in Bihar. He rose despite limited infrastructure and exposure. He transitioned from tennis ball cricket to IPL level cricket. He represents the new wave of talent from smaller regions in India.
If he improves his line and length consistency and death bowling skills, he has the potential to become a regular in IPL squads and a push for India A or national team selection in the long term.
Both Praful and Sakib are talented bowlers and have shone in their opening IPL game. How they follow it up from here remains to be seen and will be intriguing viewing for all of us moving forward. Both are talented players and have a great future going forward.
Also Read: SRH vs RR: Ishan Kishan’s Magical Innings Powers SRH To 216/6