Mustafizur’s Sunrisers in action against RCB today
When: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, 27th Match - April 30, 2016, 20:30 BST
Where: Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad
What to expect: Ever since the surprise rain that hit the city on Tuesday (April 26), temperatures have dropped slightly, but are still hovering in the early 40s.
In the night games, the trend has been win the toss, bowl first, win the game. Scores have not reflected the quality of the pitch on offer, with teams batting first posting sub-par score.
Chris Gayle's power against Bhuvneshwar Kumar's swing, Virat Kohli's flamboyance versus Ashish Nehra's experience, AB de Villiers's versatility versus Mustafizur Rahman variation.
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The second leg of the season's 'South Indian derby' promises to be a mouth-watering contest. Over the last few years, Sunrisers Hyderabad have often been a banana peel to Royal Challengers Bangalore's playoff aspirations.
And on that count, Kohli & Co. would be relieved that they are finishing off both their games against Hyderabad well before the halfway mark in the season.
That said, the visitors could ill afford another defeat considering their precarious position on the points table, a fact that wasn't lost on the team, who wasted no time to go about their drills on a steamy Friday evening.
There seems to be a clear distinction in the manner of Sunrisers' approach to batting while setting a target and chasing one. They have batted first twice and suffered collapses on both occasions.
Every time the Sunrisers have chased, David Warner has scored a fifty. However, batting first, he has only managed to score 13 (against Kolkata Knight Riders) and 0 (against Rising Pune Supergiants).
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Their inability to start well while batting first has burdened their otherwise underexposed middle-order. Scores of 50 for 4 and 32 for 5 inside the first 10 overs in the aforementioned two games, is indicative of the worrying trend.
The familiar towering presence of Gayle, who returns to the ranks after a paternity leave, promises to elevate the top-notch batting unit. Kohli and de Villiers have been the gold standard of batting in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League, but it is the bowling frailties that continue to haunt the Royal Challengers Bangalore, and constantly derail their quest for elusive glory.
Chris Jordan, Mitchell Starc's replacement in the squad, comes in with the reputation of being a death-overs specialist but his participation in Saturday's game is subject to timely arrival and subsequent integration.
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Team News:
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Shikhar Dhawan's return to form bodes well for a side that has turned to Warner in every situation of need. With Kane Williamson declared fit before the game against Rising Pune Supergiants, will the hosts be tempted to swap Eoin Morgan for the New Zealander? Only time will tell.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Tabraiz Shamsi has been a revelation since arriving as Samuel Badree's replacement. Kane Richardson has not been able to fill the Starc-shaped void in the bowling attack, while domestic options like Harshal Patel and Stuart Binny have also flattered to deceive.
Quotes:
"Obviously a disappointing last outing, but we have moved on from that. We are feeling confident as a group. Looking forward to the tough challenge that we face tomorrow against RCB," Tom Moody said in the pre-match press conference.
"Momentum is a massive thing in this tournament and that is what we need right now. So the next three games for us is absolutely enormous in terms of finding that momentum, that rhythm... that confidence that we are looking for," Allan Donald, the Royal Challengers bowling coach, said.
Squads:
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Eoin Morgan, Deepak Hooda, Aditya Tare, Naman Ojha(w), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Bipul Sharma, Mustafizur Rahman, Barinder Sran, Karn Sharma, Abhimanyu Mithun, Siddarth Kaul, Ben Cutting, Kane Williamson, Trent Boult, Tirumalsetti Suman, Ashish Reddy, Vijay Shankar, Ricky Bhui, Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul(w), AB de Villiers, Shane Watson, Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Stuart Binny, Kane Richardson, Harshal Patel, Iqbal Abdulla, Tabraiz Shamsi, David Wiese, Varun Aaron, Vikramjeet Malik, Abu Nechim, Sreenath Aravind, Kedar Jadhav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sachin Baby, Adam Milne, Vikas Tokas, Chris Gayle, Travis Head, Akshay Karnewar, Praveen Dubey
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