Follow UsAfter failing in their season opener against Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad made a steady comeback in the competition, with wins over both Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans. On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders will be eager to erase their deficit, after a big-margin defeat at the hands of Delhi Capitals the other night.
Will Sunrisers continue their purple patch or will the Knights rise back in sublime fashion?
Ground Details
Delhi Capitals became the second side to defend a total at the Brabourne Stadium, following the footsteps of Punjab Kings, who won against CSK earlier in the season. Barring those two results, all three games at the venue have been won by sides chasing, which means that the toss-winning captain will definitely opt to ‘chase’.
This IPL, Brabourne has been one of the high-scoring venues, with an average total of 194 in the first innings. However, the average winning total for teams batting first would be 198, which in essence shows the true nature of the surface.
39 out of the 64 wickets at the venue have been taken by the pacers, with the spinners only accounting for the rest 39.1%. Expect the same when these two sides take on each other on Friday.
Team Selection
Captain Selection
The 28-year-old Australian Pat Cummins will play a vital role in this encounter, with the all-rounder having a wood over the SRH top-order. His pace combined with his ability to bowl the variations will make him stand out in this encounter between two top teams. In case you needed a reminder on his abilities, Cummins on his season debut this year, scored a colossal 56* against 2020 IPL champions Mumbai Indians.
Criclytics predicts Pat Cummins to pick 0-1 wickets against Sunrisers Hyderabad
X-factors
Sunrisers Hyderabad are one of the few teams, who in the past have had success against Sunil Narine. The West Indian Mystery spinner, however, has started this year too with a bang, picking up four wickets in just five games, averaging just 24.3. Against a struggling top-order, it might be a prime time for the West Indian to reverse his fortunes against the Sunrisers.
Criclytics predicts Sunil Narine to score 19-29 runs and pick 1-2 wickets against SRH
At the age of 34, with several people writing him off, Umesh Yadav made a stunning comeback. With the new-ball, the right-arm pacer has been the chief wrecker for the Knights, with ten wickets in the competition thus far, conceding runs at just 6.6, averaging 13.2. In addition to that, the pacer is currently the leading wicket-taker in the competition during the powerplay phase.
Criclytics predicts Umesh Yadav to pick 2-3 wickets against SRH
While there is criticism around Kane Williamson’s start in the powerplay, he still is one of the best batters in the Sunrisers’ outfit. In four games, the right-hander has just scored 107 runs but has shown in the franchise’s previous game against Gujarat Titans that he is a vital cog of this Sunrisers’ unit.
Criclytics predicts Kane Williamson to score 28-42 runs against KKR
Here are the top-10 picks as per Criclytics projected points
Probable XIs
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Kane Williamson (c), Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran(w), Shashank Singh, Shreyas Gopal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, Umran Malik, T Natarajan.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings(w), Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Umesh Yadav, Rasikh Salam, Varun Chakravarthy