India, April 3 -- Teams that use aggression to define themselves often become prisoners of it. The expectation to attack becomes a compulsion; the compulsion, in turn, becomes predictable. Opponents plan for it, conditions occasionally blunt it, and when it fails there is little left to fall back on. Sunrisers Hyderabad, until now, have flirted with that risk. Their best has been overwhelming; their worst, brittle. And it has often seemed they don't care about finding a middle ground. Not at least till Thursday.

Like in the past, Sunrisers began the way they know best. The ball flew with unmistakable intent, and the Powerplay yielded a torrent of runs. It looked, briefly, like another evening where Sunrisers would attempt to overwhelm th...