SRH v RCB, IPL 2021: Sunrisers Hyderabad's predicted playing XI

After falling short against the Kolkata Knight Riders in their first 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter, the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Match 6 at Chepauk.

Barring the ever-economical Rashid Khan, the SRH bowling attack leaked runs against KKR. Even Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has been one of the team's most consistent performers over the years and is in very good form, wasn't excused from punishment.

However, despite the loss, SRH are unlikely to make too many changes to their playing XI.

SRH's squad for IPL 2021: David Warner, Kane Williamson, Virat Singh, Manish Pandey, Priyam Garg, Wriddhiman Saha, Jonny Bairstow, Sreevats Goswami, Vijay Shankar, Mitchell Marsh, Mohammad Nabi, Jason Holder, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan, T Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Siddarth Kaul, Basil Thampi, Shahbaz Nadeem, Kedar Jadhav, Jagadeesha Suchith, Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Here is SRH's predicted playing XI for their IPL 2021 game against SRH.

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Openers: Wriddhiman Saha (wk), David Warner (c)

Wriddhiman Saha

Wriddhiman Saha nearly dropped a catch and chopped one on from Shakib Al Hasan in SRH's first IPL 2021 match, but he should hold on to his place in the side. The experienced wicket-keeper is an asset on turning tracks, and has strung together a fruitful partnership with captain David Warner.

Warner appears to have recovered completely from the groin injury he sustained during India's tour of Australia, although he was dismissed cheaply against KKR. The SRH skipper is the most important cog in his team's wheel, and he'll need to get back amongst the runs against one of his favourite oppositions.

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Middle order: Manish Pandey, Jonny Bairstow, Abdul Samad

Manish Pandey

Manish Pandey's laboured fifty went in vain against KKR, and SRH might demand more from their premier Indian batsman. He needs to justify batting ahead of the in-form Jonny Bairstow, who came in at No. 4 in the last game and played the biggest hand in SRH gettting as close as they did.

Young Abdul Samad has impressed all with his free strokeplay, and a promotion in the batting order might be on the cards against RCB. He may even be needed to contribute a few overs of leg-spin on a turning Chennai track.

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All-rounders: Vijay Shankar, Mohammad Nabi

Mohammad Nabi

Vijay Shankar's first game for SRH in a long time didn't go to plan, as he leaked runs in the only over he bowled and batted in the lower-middle order. The all-rounder's prowess against spin will come in handy against RCB.

With RCB having right-handers throughout their batting lineup, Mohammad Nabi's place in the SRH playing XI has come under question. If the team wants to play either Kane Williamson or Jason Holder, we might see Shahbaz Nadeem walk into the XI as the second spinner.

But that seems unlikely at the moment, especially since there's no one the left-arm spinner can realistically replace. Nabi will have to be at his best against De Villiers, Maxwell and Kohli.

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Bowlers: Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, T Natarajan

Rashid Khan

Sandeep Sharma is the only uncertain aspect of SRH's bowling attack for the game against RCB. But his excellent performances from IPL 2020, coupled with his success against Kohli, should mean that he gets an extended run in the XI.

The rest of the SRH bowling attack - Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan and T Natarajan - picks itself.