Hyderabad aim to halt Gujarat juggernaut
After 2 losses, Sunrisers shone against Mumbai, but face a tough game against roaring Lions
Sunrisers Hyderabad will aim to end Gujarat Lion’s threematch winning streak when they face-off in an Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium today.
Hyderabad snapped their opening two-match loss — to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders — with a seven-wicket thumping of Mumbai Indians on Monday but against hosts Gujarat they will face a strong challenge.
Gujarat are currently second in the points table with three consecutive wins and they will throw everything in their bid to extend the winning run.
The IPL debutants have won their two away matches against Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians. They also overcame fellow debutants Rising Pune Supergiants here by seven wickets.
Gujarat, captained by Suresh Raina, have been guided by the heroics of Australian opening batsman Aaron Finch.
Biggest danger
The right-hander will be Hyderabad’s biggest danger as he has scores of 74, 50 and 67 not out respectively in the three matches so far.
However, his opening partner, retired New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum hasn’t really fired yet, barring a 49 against Pune, while Raina has failed to convert starts of 20s and 30s into big ones.
Today:
Gujarat Lions v Sunrisers Hyderabad at Rajkot Start time: 6.30pm UAE Live telecast on OSN Sports HD Cricket
It could be a crucial game for McCullum as West Indian Dwayne Smith is waiting for his chance.
Other batsmen in the team are wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthick and all-rounders Dwayne Bravo and James Faulkner. The return of local star Ravindra Jadeja is yet to be confirmed as the allrounder got married recently.
Gujarat’s bowling is also strong and has delivered, keeping their reputation intact. Medium pacers Praveen Kumar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Bravo and Faulkner have been complemented well by spinners in the form of Shadab Jakati and Praveen Tambe. They also have ace pacer Dale Steyn in their ranks and it will be interesting when Raina plays the South African.
In the other camp, Indian opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan’s poor run has been a worry for Hyderabad. The lefthander has scored only 16 runs in the three games so far and Hyderabad definitely need him to end his slump. He also had a poor World Twenty20 during which he scored 43 runs in four outings before being dropped for the semi-final against eventual champions West Indies.
Captain David Warner has looked in very good touch with scores of 90 and 58 in the three matches — and the Australian’s performance is key to Hyderabad’s success.