What

Sunrisers Hyderabad, once table-toppers, but who have now slipped to sixth in the VIVO IPL 2019 standings, will take on current leaders Chennai Super Kings in Match 33.

Sunrisers have now suffered three consecutive losses – two of those at home; it is the first time in four seasons that SRH have lost two consecutive matches at home. The big worry for SRH is the lack of depth in their batting line-up. Openers David Warner and Jonny Bairstow won them matches in the early part of the tournament, but when the need arose for the middle order to chip in, they were exposed; against the Mumbai Indians and the Delhi Capitals, they were bundled out for 96 and 116 respectively.

There was an attempt made by SRH management to address the problem. Kane Williamson, the regular captain – who missed several of the earlier matches because of injury – returned to bat at number three. Despite Williamson’s inclusion, SRH still need the batters in the middle order to do better than they have fared so far. One player – perhaps Vijay Shankar, or Manish Pandey (if selected) – need to take up the responsibility of finishing. A left-field selection option available to Sunrisers is to have an Indian batsman – Shreevats Goswami or Wriddhiman Saha – open the innings in place of Jonny Bairstow, and include Shakib al Hasan in the middle order.

The Super Kings have found a way to win despite not having their first-choice players available to them. Lungi Ngidi, who was expected to be one their key bowlers, was ruled out before the tournament, while Dwayne Bravo – the highest wicket-taker in the T20 format – has missed the last few matches because of injury. Several players have put their hands up and delivered match-winning performances; that five different players have won Match awards illustrates that CSK haven’t depended on one or two players. The team management must be concerned about the lack of runs from their openers – particularly Shane Watson, who has now managed 67 runs in his last six hits. Murali Vijay and Sam Billings are options available for CSK to explore.

When

17 April 2019, 8pm IST

Where

Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad

Previous Match XIs:

Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner, Jonny Bairstow, Kane Williamson, Ricky Bhui, Vijay Shankar, Deepak Hooda, Abhishek Sharma, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed.

Chennai Super Kings: Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner, Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur.

Protagonists

SRH will want David Warner to retain the Orange Cap; the Australian, whose natural game is to bat aggressively, has shown his willingness to play second fiddle to Jonny Bairstow who has often begun briskly. Warner loves playing in Hyderabad, and against the Chennai Super Kings; he has scored half-centuries in his last three hits against them.

The Super Kings will be delighted that Suresh Raina is back among the runs. The left-hander had a disappointing first half of the tournament – scoring 136 runs in seven innings. But against KKR in the previous match, he scored 58 not out in a successful run-chase and the left-hander will take a lot of confidence from that performance. Raina, who needs 48 runs to once again become the highest run-getter in the IPL, and MS Dhoni (CSK’s top run-getter) will be central characters in CSK’s batting plans.

Both teams have used their spinners very effectively, and one can expect more of the same in this match; Rashid Khan and Imran Tahir are the ones likely to cause plenty of damage.

Head to Head in Indian Premier League

Overall: Matches – 10, Sunrisers Hyderabad – 2, Chennai Super Kings – 8.

In 2018:  Matches – 4, Sunrisers Hyderabad – 0, Chennai Super Kings – 4.

Trivia

The Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad have the two most-economical spin bowling attacks in VIVO IPL 2019; the overall economy rate of CSK’s spinners this season is 6.15, while SRH’s spinners’ economy rate is 6.60.

David Warner needs 21 runs to complete 3000 runs for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL.

Sunrisers Hyderabad have the best scoring rate in the Powerplay overs – 8.33. Chennai Super Kings (6.22) have the poorest scoring rate in the powerplay overs this season.