In the 37th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will be locking horns with Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Sharjah. Hyderabad’s lean patch seems to have continued in the second leg of the tournament as well as they were thoroughly thrashed by Delhi Capitals (DC) by a comfortable margin of 8 wickets on Wednesday.
The Men in Orange are now practically out of contention to qualify for the playoffs, but mathematics is providing them with a slim hope. With a solitary win, SRH is still reeling at the bottom of the table with only 2 points under their belt. Punjab Kings, on the other hand, should blame themselves and only themselves for their loss against Rajasthan Royals, (RR) as they snatched loss from the jaws of the win in the run-chase.
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It has now become a habit for PBKS, and they need to address their middle-order batting issues soon, as they mainly rely on their openers Lokesh Rahul and Mayank Agarwal. It will be interesting who will come out on top between the bottom-placed sides.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)
Sandeep Sharma was only introduced in the eighth over against DC, but he might come on earlier having tasted success with the new ball in Sharjah in the last season. He has taken eight wickets in the last five matches against Punjab, and an economy of under 7.5 in four of those games. Using Rashid Khan up front against Rahul can be the key for Sunrisers, as the Afghanistan legspinner has dismissed the opener thrice while Sandeep has had the same success against Mayank Agarwal.
Probable XI: David Warner, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Kane Williamson (c), Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Jason Holder, Abdul Samad, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed.
Punjab Kings (PBKS )
Chris Jordan and Nathan Ellis are the prospects to replace Adil Rashid as the England legspinner conceded too many runs in the last game. Either one of Ravi Bishnoi and M Ashwin could make the team, possibly in place of Ishan Porel. Bishnoi has been successful against Warner, dismissing him twice in four balls last season. Jordan finished a spell of 3-17 last year in Dubai, with the England all-rounder being instrumental in containing Sunrisers middle-order.
Probable XI: KL Rahul (c & wk), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Fabian Allen, Chris Jordan, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi.
Fantasy XI Suggestion 1:
Nicholas Pooran, KL Rahul (vc), David Warner, Kane Williamson, Aiden Markram, Mayank Agarwal, Fabian Allen, Arshdeep Singh, Rashid Khan (c), Mohammed Shami, Jason Holder
Fantasy XI Suggestion 2:
Lokesh Rahul (c), Manish Pandey, Kane Williamson (vc), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Jason Holder, Fabian Allen, Mohammad Shami, Rashid Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Arshdeep Singh
