Praful Hinge delivered one of the most sensational IPL debuts in history during Sunrisers Hyderabad's (SRH) clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on April 13, 2026, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
The 24-year-old Vidarbha pacer, bought by SRH for ₹30 lakh as a backup pace option, opened the bowling in RR's chase of 217 and created instant mayhem.
Hinge's first over was nothing short of historic. After conceding a single to Yashasvi Jaiswal, he struck with his second ball, dismissing explosive opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for a golden duck via a hard-length delivery that induced a top-edge to the wicketkeeper. He followed it up by castling Dhruv Jurel (who chopped on) and trapping Lhuan-dre Pretorius, caught at long leg off
a flick.
Praful Hinge creates IPL Record
This triple-wicket over-figures of 1-0-1-3-marked the first time in 19 years of IPL that three wickets fell in the opening over of an innings. RR slumped to 1/3, their top order in tatters.
The dream continued as Hinge claimed a fourth wicket, removing captain Riyan Parag (edged to slip), reducing RR to 9/5 in three overs. He finished with impressive figures of 4/34 in 4 overs (or 4/18 in some reports for his key spells), combining bounce, seam movement, and control. His spell dismantled RR's chase, paving the way for SRH's 57-run victory alongside fellow debutant Sakib Hussain's 4-fer.
Praful Hinge breaks 100k Followers on Instagram
And along with the performance on the pitch, Praful's Instagram followers count took a gigantic hike. Before he bowled the first over, he had around 6,400 followers on his social media profile, which took a huge leap as the night progressed.
At the end of the night and at the time of publishing, he has crossed 108k followers on Instagram, a massive hike of 1587 per cent on the night. The star performance on the field has reflected massively off the field as well, as he continues to gain more followers.
