Sports
Sunrisers Hyderabad one win away from booking playoff spot
After finishing in the bottom half of the table in 2014 and 2015, Sunrisers Hyderabad find themselves one win away from an IPL playoff spot in 2016. They have three matches in hand, but the failure of their middle order and seam attack against Delhi Daredevils on Thursday should caution them from being overconfident.
The bowlers may have just had an off day but the middle-order has been underwhelming for a while. Sunrisers have scored at a run rate of 7.5 between the 8th and 15th overs in this IPL. Only Gujarat Lions and Mumbai Indians have fared poorer in this period. The number of dot balls faced by the Sunrisers batsmen in these overs – 202 – is second only to Mumbai’s 217. The acceleration needed to convert the starts from David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan has been absent, and that becomes a glaring flaw when the bowling fails.
Kings XI Punjab should look to exploit that. Their frontline bowlers Sandeep Sharma, Mohit Sharma and Axar Patel, along with Marcus Stoinis in the last couple of matches, have been outstanding even if the batting has let them down repeatedly. Apart from M Vijay, no batsmanhas scored more than two fifties this season. Glenn Maxwell has bagged three ducks and averages 19.88 after ten innings, while David Miller has not found form even after being relieved of captaincy.
Kings XI Punjab (probable): 1 M Vijay (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 4 Glenn Maxwell/ Farhaan Behardien, 5 Gurkeerat Singh, 6 David Miller, 7 Marcus Stoinis 8 Axar Patel 9 Mohit Sharma 10 Sandeep Sharma 11 KC Cariappa
Despite the loss on Thursday, Sunrisers have a settled combination and are unlikely to tinker with it, unless they have injury concerns. Although, Kane Williamson is struggling for form – he has scored 67 in his last four innings at a strike rate of 89.33.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (probable): 1 David Warner (capt), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Kane Williamson/ Eoin Morgan, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Moises Henriques, 6 Deepak Hooda, 7 Naman Ojha, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Barinder Sran, 10 Ashish Nehra, 11 Mustafizur Rahman
The left-handed batsman from Haryana is garnering praise from all quarters for the way he’s finishing games regularly in the most exciting IPL season.
Gavaskar reckons Tewatia’s whirlwind knock in Sharjah (in IPL 2020) where he smashed West Indies pacer Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over, gave him the confidence that he belongs to the big stage.
Speaking on Cricket Live on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “That assault on Sheldon Cottrell in Sharjah gave him the belief to do the impossible and the confidence that he belongs here. We saw the impossible (he did with the bat) the other day as well. There’s no twitching or touching the pads (which shows a batter’s nervousness) when he bats in the death overs. He just waits for the ball to be delivered and plays his shots. He’s got all the shots in the book, but most importantly his temperament to stay cool in a crisis is brilliant.”
Gavaskar has also nicknamed the 28-year-old cricketer the ‘ice-man’ and lauded Tewatia’s ability to remain unruffled during the tense moments.
Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok
Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
IPL 20202 UPDATE: KXIP vs MI IPL Dream11 Team Prediction for Today Match, Update Point Table of all Team.
In a Live debate AAP leader Syed Asad Abbas hurls abuses to BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
‘India’s Most Wanted’ trailer out Arjun Kapoor on hunt of Osama-Bin-Laden
Time to move on: Sonakshi on Shatrughan’s joining Congress
