Can The Sunrisers Hyderabad claim their first away win of the season when they take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy.
After the most spectacular implosion in IPL history, the Royal Challengers Bangalore will be looking to get back to winning ways when they welcome the defending champions to the M. Chinnaswamy.
Will Virat Kohli and his men atone for this past weekend’s atrocious display or will David Warner and his bunch get their first away win of the campaign? Let’s find out:
RCB vs SRH | Tuesday 25 April 2017 | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru | 16:30
To Win Match
Royal Challengers 82/100 | Tie 35/1 | Sunrisers 1/1
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Where to now for a beleaguered Royal Challengers outfit? Well, where can you go after you’ve collapsed to the worst score in IPL history and won just two games in seven attempts? Surely it can only get better for the Royal Challengers from here? Surely the likes of Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers can deliver the side from this hellish run?
Well, what I can say is that even the best players on the planet will lose form from time to time. Kohli came into this tournament pretty undercooked having struggled against Australia. De Villiers had been nursing an injury while Gayle only averaged 17.77 in the PSL.
If these three guys are struggling for form, who will carry this team? Looking back at their run to the final last season, RCB relied far too heavily on Kohli (973 runs at an average of 81.08) and de Villiers (687-runs at 52.84). KL Rahul chipped in with just under 400 runs while Gayle had a pretty average tournament averaging just 22.70 in 10 matches.
If these guys aren’t getting the job done with the bat, then who is? It’s not like the side can call on an arsenal of world class bowlers. They were reckless in the auction blowing so much money on Tymal Mills who has failed to live up to the pre-tournament hype.
In fact, the only two players in the side that can really hold their heads up high are Yuzvendra Chahal and Samuel Badree. Both leg-spinners have picked up wickets at key junctures while returning tournament economy rates below seven to the over.
Looking ahead, I really don’t think this side is in the right place to be winning a game of this magnitude even if the Sunrisers’ away form leaves much to be desired. They simply don’t score enough runs without AB and Virat and with both out of form at the moment, I can’t see them getting the two points they so desperately need.
Sunrisers Hyderabad
There are very few teams as settled as the Sunrisers right now. Their four internationals are all but locked in with David Warner, Kane Williamson, Moises Henriques and Rashid Khan putting in the sort of performances you expect from marquee international players.
Williamson has been particularly impressive of late, scoring 110-runs in two matches, striking at a shade under 170. The Kiwi will be relishing an extended run in the side and will look to cement his place for the remainder of the tournament against one of the weakest bowling attacks in the competition.
He’ll be hoping that the Shikhar Dhawan and the Warner will lay the sort of foundation that he can launch from. Both have been excellent this season with Warner second in the chase for the orange cap (282 runs at 56.40) while Dhawan finds himself in eighth (235 at 33.57). If the two can put on 50-60 runs for the first wicket, it’ll give Williamson, Yuvraj Singh and Moises Henriques the chance to really put a big total on the board – something that will be necessary if one of the big three RCB batsmen come off.
While the temptation is definitely there to harp on about the Sunrisers batsmen, it’s important to acknowledge the performances of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Rashid Khan. Kumar picked up where he left off last season and is leading the wicket-taking stakes.
Khan – in his first IPL – has been most impressive. Often being utilised inside of the Power Play, the young Afghan has been bamboozling some of the world’s premier batsmen on some pretty flat wickets. The youngster will again be put to the test against Kohli, de Villiers and Gayle – whether or not he passes remains to be seen.
All in all, I think the Sunrisers are in pretty good shape. Their rock solid international contingent perfectly complements their strong local player base. I fully expect them to come away with their first away win of the season here.
Verdict: Sunrisers Hyderabad 1/1
The Sunrisers have been one of the better sides in the tournament this season, winning four of their seven games. I also can’t get over how badly RCB imploded over the weekend – you’ll never win cricket matches if you rely solely on three superstars, something the Royal Challengers have been banking on for far too long now. The Sunrisers might not have the star power but they’re a fantastic unit who’ve proven they can go all the way – get on at even money!
Value Bet: Kane Williamson to top score for the Sunrisers at 7/2
The Kiwi has been phenomenal since he was first brought into the side against the Daredevils. Both of his performances have oozed class so far and I’m 100% certain he’ll go after a rather underwhelming RCB attack. Back him to top score for his side at generous odds of 7/2.
