What

Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab will vie for two crucial points in Match 48 of VIVO IPL 2019.

The two teams have had hot-and-cold campaigns and haven’t managed to carry momentum for more than two matches; both sides have five wins from eleven matches. Sunrisers Hyderabad, by virtue of a healthier net run rate complete the top four, while Kings XI Punjab, with a net run rate of -0.117, occupy the sixth position.

Both teams are coming into this match on the back of successive losses on the road. The Sunrisers lost to the Chennai Super Kings and most recently to the Rajasthan Royals, while KXIP lost to the Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore. The Sunrisers will be delighted to be back home, where they’ve won four of their six matches this season. Kings XI Punjab meanwhile will look to end their five-match losing streak away from home; KXIP’s only win on the road was against the Rajasthan Royals on 25 March.

Both teams have problems to fix; the Sunrisers are still figuring out a solution to their middle-order woes, while KXIP will want their pace bowlers to bowl better than they have in the competition.

When

29 April 2019, 8pm IST

Where

Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad

Previous Match XIs:

Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Vijay Shankar, Deepak Hooda, Shakib al Hasan, Wriddhiman Saha, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul, Khaleel Ahmed.

Kings XI Punjab: KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, David Miller, Nicholas Pooran, Mandeep Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin, Hardus Viljoen, Murugan Ashwin, Ankit Rajpoot, Mohammed Shami.

Protagonists

David Warner, who has almost been churning out runs like a machine, will be playing his last game of the season. The left-hander has two tasks to accomplish before he heads off to re-join the Australian national team; a) he will want put himself in a position where no one else can catch up with him and the Orange Cap stays with him, and b) he will want to power his team to a win and leave them in a position from where they can qualify to the Playoffs.

If the team management looks back, they may regret dropping Manish Pandey in the first half of the tournament. The Karnataka captain is among the top Indian batsmen playing in the tournament, and possibly deserved an extended run; he has scored consecutive half-centuries on his return to the team and looks good for many more such knocks.

Though Kings XI Punjab have proven finishers in the middle order, they’ll be best served if one of the top three - KL Rahul, Chris Gayle or Mayank Agarwal – get a big score.

Rashid Khan may not have picked up too many wickets yet, but he continues to be a presence on the field and continues to bamboozle batsmen; SRH will want him to collect a rich haul of wickets in these crucial last few matches. Kings XI Punjab have been well-served by the two Ashwins. Captain Ravichandran Ashwin is KXIP’s second-highest wicket-taker this season with 11 scalps and has tied down opposition batsmen in the middle overs. The other Ashwin in the KXIP line-up – the leg-spinner Murugan – has only picked up four wickets, but he’s been extremely consistent and has paired well with his captain to keep the runs down.

Head to Head in Indian Premier League

Overall: Matches – 13, Sunrisers Hyderabad – 9, Kings XI Punjab – 4.

In Hyderabad: Matches – 6, Sunrisers Hyderabad – 5, Kings XI Punjab – 1.

Remaining Fixtures:

For Sunrisers Hyderabad: 2 May - v Mumbai Indians in Mumbai, 4 May – v Royal Challengers Bangalore in Bengaluru.

For Kings XI Punjab: 3 May – v Kolkata Knight Riders in Mohali, 5 May – v Chennai Super Kings in Mohali.