PBKS VS SRH | PREVIEW
Follow UsWhen the auction ended, the hopes were high on how Punjab Kings would perform. They had the best auction among all 10 teams, with all bases covered. Fast forward four months, they have just six wins from 13 games - and an NRR of -0.043. Have already been eliminated from the league yet again and with the promise of the golden fading just like the form of some of their key players. If it would be any consolation, a win in the final league game can only add some balm to the injury.
Standing at the other end are Sunrisers Hyderabad. A similar number of wins but a disastrous run rate to boot the cause, they know things have not been as smooth as they would have liked after the mini peak they showed following two consecutive losses at the start of the season. Their skipper Kane Williamson played a massive role in the downfall and that explained the sorry state of affairs even though the bowling unit, led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, were doing everything on their part to keep the side afloat.
On Sunday, as both sides come face to face for one final hurray this season, the riding wave of IPL momentum would have already shifted to Kolkata, the venue for the Eliminator. The game would further be played under the shadows of the impending Women’s T20 Challenge, possibly for their final edition before a full-fledged Women’s IPL kick starts next year. There are no reasons to be excited about it.
But Punjab would know. As would Hyderabad.
In a season that promised them so much, they have ended up becoming a caricature of sorts and in order to move away from that tag, both sides will aim for a thumping win in the last league game.
Punjab Kings will rely on their best-performing duo of Kagiso Rabada and Liam Livingstone to steer the two departments. Rabada as a strike bowler has worked well for Punjab this season, with 22 wickets so far, but what caught the eye is his mind-boggling consistency. Only once in 12 matches, he has gone wicket-less. For Punjab to do well, Rabada will ultimately be an enforcer, especially against the shaky Hyderabad top-order.
In the batting department, the story is crystal clear on many fronts. As cliched as it may sound the repetition has taken the fun away, but the obvious at times needs to be stated time and again to emphasize the success story. Liam Livingstone has been the middle-order aggressor for Punjab and has scored the joint-most fifties among non-openers and also hit the fifth-most runs this season. Such has been the impact of the duo that anything less than the desired focus would bring the squabble down.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have been knocked out in the group stage for the second consecutive season of the IPL. The last time this happened was back in IPL 2014 and 2015. SRH have experienced highs and lows at the same time in IPL 2022. They have registered five wins on the trot in IPL 2022 (which is the second-longest winning streak for them in the IPL) and have also registered five losses in a row this season which is the longest losing streak for them in the competition. Nothing about them - barring Umran Malik and Bhuvneshwar Kumar - has worked out well.
While Williamson’s struggles in the powerplay have been well documented, SRH have failed to find a proper finisher to take the spot at No. 6 and 7 in this season. Abdul Samad was given an opportunity initially but he did not click. Washington Sundar and Shashank Singh were given a long run at this role after the promise they showed, but, they too have not been consistent with their performances.
SRH’s batsmen at No 6 and 7 have in total scored 150 runs this season which is the lowest for a Team’s batsmen at that spot. Their SR of 118 is the second-worst among teams. Their average, BPD, and BPB ratios are the worst for any team’s No 6 and 7 batters. If Rabada can take care of the powerplay, the likes of Arshdeep Singh and Rahul Chahar can be effective in the middle and death to spell the final blow for the southern Indian side.
Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Date and Time: May 22, 2022, 07:30 PM IST
Probable XIs:
Punjab Kings: Jonny Bairstow, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Liam Livingstone, Mayank Agarwal (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Harpreet Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Priyam Garg, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Glenn Phillips, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (C), Fazalhaq Farooqi, Umran Malik, T Natarajan
