SRH vs PBKS: Kavya Maran hugs Abhishek Sharma's family after win; Preity Zinta praises star batter

The Orange Army, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), owned by Kavya Maran, secured a dominant victory over Preity Zinta's team, Punjab Kings (PBKS), in a thrilling IPL encounter.

The star of the match was Indian cricket talent Abhishek Sharma, who delivered a phenomenal performance. The 24-year-old smashed 141 runs off just 55 balls, leading SRH to an emphatic 8-wicket win over PBKS.

Abhishek Sharma steals the show: Kavya Maran and Preity Zinta shower praise post SRH win

As Abhishek led SRH to victory, Kavya Maran jumped out of her seat in sheer joy to celebrate the historic knock. In a heartwarming gesture, she then made her way to Abhishek Sharma's parents, who were present in the stadium. Kavya warmly shook hands and hugged them, acknowledging their son's stunning performance.

Preity Zinta took to X (formerly Twitter) to praise Abhishek's innings. She wrote,"Tonight belongs to Abhishek Sharma! What a talent & what an unbelievable knock. Congratulations SRH! As for us, it's best to forget tonight and move on as it's early days in the tournament & such games are best forgotten. #SRHvPBKS"

While appreciating her own team's efforts, Preity added, "A big shout out to Shreyas Iyer, Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, & Marcus Stoinis for their incredible performance tonight. I'm so proud of how they played & I'm confident we will come back stronger as a team in the coming games. Tonight is about taking the positives & leaving the negatives behind. Good night, everyone. #SRHvPBKS"

Preity Zinta also met Abhishek Sharma on the field following the match and recreated his celebratory hand gesture.

Abhishek celebrated his century and scored against Yuzvendra Chahal by holding up a white piece of paper with the words "This one is for the Orange Army" written on it. 

His century was recorded as the sixth-fastest in IPL history, cementing his place as one of the most exciting young batters in the league.

In the post-match presentation, Abhishek expressed his gratitude to his mentors and teammates:

"Special mention to Yuvraj Paaji as well because I have been talking to him, and I won't deny Mr. Suryakumar Yadav either—he's been in touch and believed this moment was coming. So, thanks to him too," said Abhishek.

"A special mention to the team and our captain, Pat Cummins. The atmosphere within the team was very positive and simple. Even though we weren't doing that well, I knew deep down that I needed to do something big to help us get back on a winning streak. I also had a chat with Travis Head—it was a special d