Equipped with a balanced squad that features a formidable batting line-up and experienced bowlers, last edition’s runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad will start as favourites in their opening Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Rajasthan Royals on Sunday. Sunrisers have some of the most explosive batters in their line-up in Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen, and with a belter of a track likely to offer at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, they would fancy a massive total in the afternoon match of the double-header day.
In fact, if any team can get to the much talked about 300-run total after batting first, it is Sunrisers that is expected to achieve the feat with the firepower they have.
The return of India all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy after an injury is also expected to add to the arsenal of the Sunrisers. With the kind of form Abhishek and Head have been having recently, the Sunrisers supporters can expect to see impressive strokes.
In the last T20I he played, Abhishek scored 135 off just 54 balls with a strike rate of 250 against England during the home series in February. With few established names in the bowling department of the Royals, except England pacer Jofra Archer, there is every possibility that the Sunrisers can eye another 250-plus total if they bat first on Sunday.
Sunrisers posted 250-plus totals three times last season, including 287 against Royal Challengers Bangaluru in an away match and 277 against Mumbai Indians at home. The explosive duo of Abhishek and Head scored the highest IPL powerplay total of 125 against Delhi Capitals in the third instance when they posted 266.
The experienced pace duo of captain Pat Cummins and Mohammed Shami will man the bowling department along with spinner Adam Zampa — another seasoned campaigner.
The 2016 winners Sunrisers look far batter placed than Royals, who are will miss skipper Sanju Samson due to his finger injury. Samson cannot keep wickets and field and can only bat with protection on his finger. It won’t be a surprise if he comes as an Impact Player.
Batter Riyan Parag will be the interim captain for the 2008 champions Royals in their first three IPL matches.
With the release of Englishman Jos Buttler, the Royals’ batting line-up has dwindled though they still have the likes of Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Rana and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Sunrisers and Royals played two games against each other last season. Sunrisers won both the games and will be confident of maintaining their supremacy over the Rajasthan-based outfit.
The first meeting was in the league stage when the Sunrisers prevailed by just one run.
Sunrisers and Royals finished at the second and third positions respectively after the league stage and they faced against each other once again in the qualifier 2.
Sunrisers won that game with ease, beating the Royals by 36 runs to qualify for the final which they lost to Kolkata Knight Riders.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (c), Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Abhishek Sharma, Sachin Baby, Mohammed Shami, Adam Zampa, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Rahul Chahar, Eshan Malinga, Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Wiaan Mulder, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Atharva Taide, Brydon Carse, Simarjeet Singh, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari.
Rajasthan Royals: Riyan Parag (c), Sanju Samson, Shubham Dubey, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Rana, Kunal Singh Rathore, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Ashok Sharma, Tushar Deshpande, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwal, Kwena Maphaka, Sandeep Sharma, Maheesh Theekshana, Yudhvir Singh.
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