A 22-year-old debutant, a shattered record, and a night that rewrote bowling brilliance in IPL history
On a sultry April night in Hyderabad, the air was thick not only with heat but also with expectation. The Mumbai Indians had scraped their way to a score of 136 for 7 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad—hardly a total to send shivers down anyone's spine. However, sometimes it takes just one man to light up an entire city.
On 6 April 2019, that man was Alzarri Joseph. Unknown to many, at just 22 years old, the young West Indian was handed the ball for his first-ever delivery in the Indian Premier League. What followed was not merely a debut—it was a demolition job.
Credit: Indian Express
Yet, no one saw it coming. After all, Joseph was only playing because Lasith Malinga was unavailable. But then again, fate always finds its own heroes.
Before the storm with the ball arrived, a flurry of late fireworks with the bat. Mumbai's innings had nearly crumbled like a biscuit in tea. At 65 for 5, they were gasping for breath. Rohit Sharma (11) had fallen cheaply, Quinton de Kock (19) couldn't convert, and the middle order simply didn't show up.
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Enter Kieron Pollard, the man who knows a thing or two about pulling off miracles. His unbeaten 46 off just 26 balls was methodical. He started slowly, took his time, and then went berserk at the death. 3 sixes and 2 boundaries arrived in a flash, with 39 runs flying off his bat in the final overs. Add to that a few dropped sitters by SRH fielders, and suddenly, 136 looked slightly better than dreadful.
But surely, still not defendable?
Then came the moment. Joseph's very first delivery—fast, full, and hostile—sneaked past David Warner's (15) bat and clattered into the stumps via an inside edge. Warner was the tournament's leading run-scorer at that point. Gone, just like that. Joseph wheeled away in delight, arms spread, face alight. His fairytale had begun. That ball wasn't just a wicket. It was just a warning.
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Soon, Vijay Shankar (5) top-edged a rising delivery. Another one gone. In just 3.4 overs, Joseph finished with astonishing figures of 6 for 12—the best ever in IPL history, breaking Sohail Tanvir's 11-year-old record of 6 for 14.
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Hyderabad never recovered. Johny Bairstow had already departed victim to a Rahul Chahar beauty. Shankar and Manish Pandey followed suit. The middle order meandered aimlessly, and then Joseph returned to drain the spirit out of the chase.
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SRH folded only for 96, marking their lowest IPL total ever. There were just 17.4 overs of confusion and capitulation, a defeat by 40 runs in a chase that was expected to be a walk in the park.
Joseph's final figures—3.4 overs, 1 maiden, 12 runs, 6 wickets—still stand as the greatest spell in IPL history. He wasn't just the 7th bowler to take a wicket with his first IPL ball; he was the 2nd to deliver a wicket-maiden in his debut over after Pat Cummins.
Credit: ESPNcricinfo
For context, the previous best debut performance was Andrew Tye's 5 for 17 in 2017. Joseph outperformed everyone. Here's the surprising part: the situation might have turned out differently. If Malinga had played, Joseph might have been sitting on the bench, chewing gum, and cheering for his teammates instead.
