In the eliminator of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 the IPL 2016 finalists, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be locking horns with each other at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Friday. SRH has been on a winning streak with three consecutive victories and a lot of credit for the same goes to Wriddhiman Saha and Jason Holder bringing much-needed balance to the team.
However, RCB lost their form recently. with four league consecutive losses, still they managed to reach the IPL play-offs. Despite their poor form, RCB has some stalwarts like Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. With Devdutt Padikkal going through a purple patch, Bangalore will be banking on their batsmen to deliver. The potency of their bowling unit remains concerning, especially with the doubts around Chris Morris’s fitness.
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In the head to head matches during the league phase, both teams managed to defeat each other once. However, SRH’s stunning win last week against Virat Kohli and his men will definitely be having an upper hand in terms of confidence. With both teams looking to stay alive in the IPL, we can expect a nerve-racking encounter in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
As the two sides prepare for a thrilling encounter, here’s a look at three key player battles to keep an eye on.
#1. Devdutt Padikkal vs Sandeep Sharma
SRH medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma has pulled off some match-winning performances in IPL 2020. With nine wickets in his last four matches, including a memorable 3 for 34 against Mumbai, Sharma can be a bowler to look forward to in the Eliminator. He will be expected to lead the pace attack once again in a must-win encounter against RCB.
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At the top of the innings, Sandeep will be up against young Devdutt Padikkal, who has been the find of the IPL 2020 season for RCB. Although playing in only his first season, Padikkal has amassed 472 runs so far at a strike rate of 126.54 with five impressive fifties. He has taken it upon himself to give the team flying starts in the power play and has succeeded more often than not, where Sharma can be an obstacle for him.
#2. David Warner vs Mohammed Siraj
The SRH skipper, David Warner has had a decent tournament thus far by his own high standards but on his day remains a formidable opponent regardless of the format, such is his ability to fashion run-scoring opportunities. Mohammad Siraj has been RCB’s go-to man whenever they needed wickets and they will hope he can dismiss the SRH skipper early and thus increase their chances of a victory.
#3. AB de Villiers vs Rashid Khan
After producing some stunning performances in the first half of IPL 2020, AB de Villiers has been struggling in recent times. Not only has he failed to convert starts, he hasn’t been at his fluent best either. Having said that, ABD is a big match player, and would very well be aware of what the team expects of him.
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However, SRH has Rashid Khan, who has unsettled a number of renowned batsmen with the numerous tricks up his sleeve. Khan has often found a way to outfox the batsmen and in this season he has scalped 9 wickets in the IPL 2020 Eliminator against RCB. If he can find a way past de Villiers, who is an excellent player of spin, Khan would have done half the job.
