Dale Steyn bowled for a long period in the nets, but the team composition may not give scope for the South African pacer to get into the playing XI.

Sunrisers Hyderabad, on the other hand, have rejuvenated their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 campaign following a comprehensive win over Mumbai Indians, the defending champions. Yet, there is a lot to work on for the David Warner-led side as they look to enter the top four on the points table.

To top the list of concerns is the form of Shikhar Dhawan, who has scored 16 runs in three matches this season, and 59 runs in the last 7 Twenty20 games. His early dismissal has put pressure on a batting order that doesn’t have an experienced middle order to bank upon.

However, VVS Laxman, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s coach, has defended the southpaw and said, “His form is not a worry. But we want him to do well. He is an exceptionally good player and a match winner. Whenever he plays well, he influences the result of the team.”

Invariably, it has been the bowlers and Warner who have bailed the side out. Against an in-form team like Gujarat Lions, who are the only unbeaten side in the tournament so far, they will need to bring out their A game. Deepak Hooda, secured for INR 4.2 crore, is yet to showcase his big-hitting prowess. In the absence of Yuvraj Singh, Hooda striking form could be of prime importance for Sunrisers. The likes of Ashish Reddy and Bipul Sharma have also chipped in and impressed the Sunrisers hierarchy, but the team will need the senior players to put in the bulk of the performances as the tournament progresses.

While Sunrisers Hyderabad are yet to figure out the pitch and weather conditions, going by the first match, the wicket is expected to stay true and dew isn’t likely to play a part. With the match set for an evening start, teams might opt to field after winning the toss.

Teams:

Gujarat Lions (From): Aaron Finch, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina(c), Dinesh Karthik(w), Dwayne Bravo, Shadab Jakati, James Faulkner, Dhawal Kulkarni, Praveen Kumar, Pravin Tambe, Akshdeep Nath, Sarabjit Ladda, Ravindra Jadeja, Pradeep Sangwan, Paras Dogra, Eklavya Dwivedi, Jaydev Shah, Dale Steyn, Andrew Tye, Dwayne Smith, Umang Sharma, Amit Mishra, Ishan Kishan, Shivil Kaushik

Sunrisers Hyderabad (From): David Warner(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Eoin Morgan, Naman Ojha(w), Deepak Hooda, Bipul Sharma, Ashish Reddy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Barinder Sran, Mustafizur Rahman, Siddarth Kaul, Karn Sharma, Abhimanyu Mithun, Ben Cutting, Kane Williamson, Trent Boult, Aditya Tare, Tirumalsetti Suman, Vijay Shankar, Ricky Bhui, Ashish Nehra, Yuvraj Singh