Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will aim to get its IPL campaign back on track when it takes on Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Monday.
DC snapped its five-game losing streak after securing a nervy four-wicket win against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to register its first points. DC has two points with just one win and five losses from its six games
SRH has lost four games from six and has four points. DC is at the bottom of the points table at 10th, and SRH is 9th.
Both teams will look to find the impetus to win consistently to keep their hopes of qualifying for the Playoffs.
DC captain David Warner will hope his team fires in unison, while SRH will be keen on its batting unit to strike form.
The Aiden Markram-led SRH has blown hot and cold and failed to capitalise on its winning momentum. After recovering from two losses at the start, it won the next two before losing to heavyweights Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.
The highly rated Harry Brook has shown glimpses of his ability with a fine century, but SRH will need more from him. The opener has to shoulder the responsibility of giving his team a good start and also bat deep. Designated opener Mayank Agarwal has made way from the slot for Abhishek Sharma to pair up with Brook.
The move has not worked yet, but the team management has indicated it will stick to the Brook-Abhishek combination, with Agarwal dropping down the order.
SRH will also bank on Rahul Tripathi, who is yet to shine in the tournament. SRH might need the middle-order batsman to be measured in his approach to provide stability. If the top-order gets going, SRH batting has depth in Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, Agarwal and Washington Sundar to finish strong.
SRH bowling is spearheaded by seasoned seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar with the fiery Umran Malik being his ally. Mayank Markande’s spin, too, has been effective.
DC’s first win of the tournament saw Sourav Ganguly, the team’s director of cricket, remark it was like “getting my first Test run.” Warner’s side will look to settle as a unit and push on.
DC ticked most boxes against KKR, with Warner scoring a fine half-century and Manish Pandey playing the supporting role. However, its biggest concern is opener Prithvi Shaw not delivering the blisterng starts he is capable of. DC has found two strong performers in Axar Patel, a showstopper with his all-round performances, and Kuldeep Yadav.
DC has a strong pace attack in Anrich Nortje, Mukesh Kumar and Mitchell Marsh.
When Ishant Sharma was brought in, the experienced seamer bowled an inspired spell. DC will need to translate its on-paper credentials into match-winning performances.
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