Punjab Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad: Will SRH be able to register their fourth consecutive win this season
With more than a third of the season already gone with frenetic speed, Super Sunday's first match will see the clash of Punjab Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad. Both the teams have done reasonably well now and have a share of three wins each.
Shikhar Dhawan needs to fire upPunjab to stop their alternate win trap.
Punjab Kings have been a little inconsistent with their performance and wins. They have won every alternate match of the five games played. Punjab's attacking batting line-up is their main strength. The batting depth that the team carries allows each batsman to play freely with a high strike rate, which is essential in shorter formats. Their bowlers are yet to hit the mark with their performance. Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada and Rahul Chahar are yet to put on a high show for the team.
The comeback of the year - SRH
On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad has gained momentum by gaining three consecutive wins. Their performance is improving with each passing game. With not many match-winning superstars, the team has players with key defined roles. Openers Abhishek Sharma and Kane Williamson are essential for anchoring innings, followed by Nicholas Pooran and Aiden Markram. Bowlers of Sunrisers Hyderabad have shown significant progress in their performance. Marco Jansen, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan and Umran Malik will have to put their best foot forward to control Punjab's batting line-up.
Pitch Report
Dr DY Patil ground offers decent bounce to the bowlers. In the previous match here, the Gujarat Titans posted a huge target and defended it comfortably with a considerable margin. Captain winning toss might stick with the trend to bowl first.
Probable Playing XI
Punjab Kings: Mayank Agarwal (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Odean Smith, Shahrukh Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Vaibhav Arora, Arshdeep Singh
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Kane Williamson (c), Rahul Tripathi, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Aiden Markram, Shashank Singh, Jagadeesha Suchith, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, Umran Malik, T Natarajan
Stats to keep an eye on
- The teams have faced each other 18 times in IPL history. Sunrisers Hyderabad enjoys the upper hand with 12 wins while Punjab Kings won just 6 of them.
- Since 2021, Nicholas Pooran hNicholas has smashed 88 sixes in T20s, which is second most after Glenn Philips.
- Shikhar Dhawan is 19 runs away from becoming the second batter after Virat Kohli to reach the 6000-run mark in the IPL.
Considering both teams' ongoing form, it isn't easy to choose a favorite one. Both teams will be looking for their fourth win to climb up in the points table.