Despite losing their recent fixture against Rising Pune Supergiant closely, Sunrisers Hyderabad has reached a comfortable position in the league stages from where they are only required to maintain their form to keep their title defence hopes strong (the top spot in the points table still remains a priority though).
Their next fixture will be against a badly wounded and embarrassed Royal Challengers Bangalore team who are coming into the match after being made to taste its worst defeat in their history at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders.
The opposition’s current form also doesn’t look bright, as they sit right at the bottom of the points table with just two wins in seven matches. These things make SRH look as ‘favourites’ despite the fact the Orange Army will be playing on away from home.
Previous Encounter:
The two teams kick started the ongoing season in Hyderabad on April 5th. SRH had an easy outing, as they beat a depleted RCB by 35 runs and began their 2017 IPL journey on a winning note.
Stand – in RCB skipper Shane Watson opted to chase first and paid dearly for making such a decision, as SRH, led by Yuvraj Singh and Moises Henriques’ quick fifties, posted 207/4 on the scoreboard. The batting side quickly recovered after a false start where they lost their skipper David Warner cheaply.
However, Henriques (52 from 37 balls) forged a superb 74 runs stand with Dhawan (40 from 31 balls) for the 2nd wicket. Yuvraj (62 from 27 balls) capitalised on the platform and gave the final blows to the opposition.
RCB, in response, had a good start. Opener Mandeep Singh and Chris Gayle put up a quick 50 runs partnership. However, leg-spinner Rashid Khan soon began to weave his magic and along with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ashish Nehra dismantled the batting order, restricting the chasing side for just 172 in 19.4 overs
Recent Form:
SRH’s recent form will worry RCB. The visitors have are currently in the midst of a good rhythm and would love to build their momentum with another win. Beating the star-studded RCB at home is no easy job; however, SRH can exploit the batting weakness shown by the opposition in their previous encounter, although it was a once in a blue moon occurrence.
They have a bowling attack which is rated as the best in the IPL and is very well capable of handling such high-quality batting side. The batsmen are also slowly performing on their own which is a relieving factor for David Warner who was carrying the bulk of the batting responsibility in the past.
Talking Points:
Moises Henriques is doing enough to keep Mohammad Nabi out of the team. The Australian all-rounder has been a silent performer, playing wonderful knocks in the middle order. In all, he has 193 runs in six matches with three fifties. He is a great advantage SRH has at the moment. Fans will expect him to carry on with this form through the remainder of the season.
Bringing in Ashish Nehra in place of Mohammad Siraj would be a good option. He has played only two matches so far but has failed to overwhelm anyone.
His debut game against Delhi was good but the second game, SRH’s most recent one, was an expensive affair for him. Throwing him in front of the raging RCB batsmen would lead to hefty consequence if the youngster succumbs to pressure.
Here is the Likely XI:
David Warner (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Kane Williamson Yuvraj Singh, Moises Henriques, Deepak Hooda, Naman Ojha (WK), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan, Ashish Nehra, Siddharth Kaul.