Heinrich Klaasen created a moment of magic in the field during Sunrisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) IPL 2026 clash against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Saturday (April 18). CSK young batsman Ayush Mhatre’s promising knock ended with a spectacular diving catch.
Release of Ayush Mhatre
The incident occurred in the fifth match when Nitish Kumar Reddy bowled Ayush Mhatre. Batting aggressively, the explosive opener tried to clear the infield but got a top-end connection. The ball flew high to the left of center field. Klaasen, quick on his feet, sprinted to the left, leaped fully and extended his left arm. As he fell to the ground, the ball appeared to pop for a moment, but the South African star made a superb right-hand tackle as he fell to finish the grab safely.
Replays confirmed the brilliance. Klaasen caught him with one hand, first with his left hand, and used the other to anchor him mid-fall. The Hyderabad crowd erupted into cheers as Mhatre returned for a quickfire 30 off just 13 balls, studded with five boundaries and one six. His aggressive intent put CSK on the front foot at the start of their 195 chase, but that rejection shifted the momentum back to SRH.
Mhatre looked dangerous, especially after an injury scare earlier in the innings where he limped off after a quick run, but he still managed to entertain the fans with his fearless batting.
Read also | Abhishek Sharma smashed the fastest IPL fifty by Sunrisers Hyderabad
Youngster Ayush Mhatre’s explosive start was cut short
Ayush Mhatre, CSK’s up-and-coming talent known for his high strike rate, has been the bright spark for the five-time champions this season. He came in at number three and showed some impressive hitting with his clean hitting. He continued that trend in this match until Klaasen’s athletic intervention. His departure left CSK at 66/2, needing much more from the middle order, including captain Ruturaj Gaikwad and others, to chase down SRH’s competitive total of 194/9.
The SRH bowling unit, led by Nitish Kumar Reddy’s variations, cashed in on the breakthrough. Already a key batsman for SRH and leading the Orange Cap race earlier in the season, Klaasen proved his all-round value once again with this treasure.
Teams CSK vs SRH
Sunrisers Hyderabad playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan(c), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora(w), Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivang Kumar, Praful Hinge, Sakib Hussain, Eshan Malinga
SRH shock submarines: Cast: Smaran Ravichandran, Harsh Dubey, Liam Livingstone, Dilshan Madushanka, Harshal Patel
Chennai Super Kings playing XI: Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Matthew Short, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh
CSK impact subs: Cast: Smaran Ravichandran, Harsh Dubey, Liam Livingstone, Dilshan Madushanka, Harshal Patel
