The Sunrisers take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore at Hyderabad in the second match scheduled for Saturday. Both teams come on the back of defeats and will be keen to make amends in this game. The Sunrisers were beaten black and blue at Bangalore the last time these two sides faced each other.
They faced the brunt of De Villiers and Kohli in that game and the mere sight of those two might once again give the Sunrisers the jitters. It's important for the Sunrisers to believe in their abilities since the conditions at Hyderabad will be different from Bangalore.
The Royal Challengers Bangalore have been below par so far in this IPL. There have depended way too much on the individual brilliance of their key players and have failed to click as a unit.
They would, however, like to change that soon by injecting some sense of urgency to their campaign and Hyderabad will a good place to start with. They will be hurting after their loss to the Lions and we might see RCB bounce back like a cornered tiger.
Venue: Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad
Match date: April 30, 2016
Match timings: 2000 hrs IST
If Sunrisers Hyderabad bats first
Predicted score: 165 and above
Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner would like to score big and fast against a not-so-fancied RCB bowling attack. In fact, one can expect David Warner to get stuck into the RCB bowlers in the initial overs.
Lots will be expected from him and he will be keen to deliver the goods for Hyderabad. It was his early wicket in the previous game that deflated the morale of the Sunrisers and he would not want a repeat of that.
Shikhar Dhawan has come back into his elements and he would love to keep it going. The rest of the batting in the middle order will revolve around Eoin Morgan. The batters will need to pull their socks up as they might be needing something over 160 against an extremely strong RCB batting line-up.
The bowlers would dearly want to get the RCB top order out cheaply. Ashish Nehra would like to bring the ball into Virat earlier on and Bhuvneshwar will try his best to trouble Gayle with his prodigious swing. They could be in for a leather hunt if they don't pick 2 RCB wickets inside the powerplays.
Mustafizur Rahman will once again hold the key to Sunrisers' success. It's important for Warner to use Mustafizur in short bursts by giving him one over spells and calling him to bowl whenever his side is in a dire need for a wicket.
Bipul Sharma could make way for the more experienced Karn Sharma. Karn Sharma and Deepak Hooda will bowl some important overs between them and they would be keen to do a fair job.
If Royal Challengers Bangalore bat first
Predicted score: 175 and above
On the batting front, Chris Gayle should be back at the top of the order for this game. Gayle, Kohli, and De Villiers form the fulcrum of the side and the Sunrisers will be extremely wary of them.
Gayle has not fired yet in this IPL and he would want to make a statement soon. Virat Kohli will be brimming with confidence after he got his maiden IPL hundred in the last game.
There is hardly anything wrong he can do these days and he would hope his individual form rubs off on the entire team. AB de Villiers too has been in scintillating form and he would want to continue tormenting oppositions with his strokeplay. Shane Watson and Lokesh Rahul can whack it around throw the kitchen sink if push comes to shove.
The bowling has been a major worry for the Royal Challengers. They have continued to disappoint game after game and Kohli will be planning to ring in some changes. Varun Aaron might just get a game here if they decide to drop Kane Richardson.
Tabraiz Shamsi, the Chinaman, might hold on to his place since the sluggish wicket at Hyderabad should aid his wrist spin.
The head coach, Daniel Vettori will be working overtime with the bowlers and chalking out plans to counter Warner & co. Expect RCB bowlers to bowl better at Hyderabad with their spinners coming to the fore.
Chahal, Shamsi, and Abdullah will be expected to pick important wickets in the middle and turn the game towards RCB's favour. Shamsi vs Morgan should be a fun contest and Shamsi might just get the better of Morgan.
Probable winners: Royal Challengers Bangalore
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