As Sunrisers Hyderabad take on Royal Challengers Bangalore, fireworks are expected to fly as both sides are packed with power performers. RCB have AB De Villiers, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and Mitchell Starc, while the Sunrisers have David Warner, Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Eoin Morgan and Trent Boult.
Clearly, it is a contest between equals, and what makes it special is that both the Hyderabad side and the Bangalore team are playing at their very best at the moment, and both have excellent chances of making it to the playoffs. But a loss cannot be excused for this reason.
Sunrisers Hyderabad are on a roll as the tournament draws to a close. They have won their last three games and look well set for a top four finish. Everything seems to have come good for Sunrisers, even though it has been at the expense of their most expensive player, Dale Steyn, who cannot get a game for them.
It is incredible that Steyn cannot get a game in this IPL, but it is clear why – he seems utterly exhausted and past his best. Trent Boult is a capable replacement.
Royal Challengers Bangalore have been winning all their matches, except that they have had a blip in the last game, losing a rain affected match to Kings XI Punjab. That was a surprise because the Kings XI have hardly won all season. RCB cannot afford another loss now, as that would certainly cost them a spot in the top-4 – which every team in the IPL wants.
David Warner, the Sunrisers Hyderabad captain has been a star performer for them, scoring heavily, making 504 runs in 12 games, more than any other batsman in this season’s IPL. Others like Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques and Eoin Morgan have offered excellent support to their captain as well.
Henriques in particular, is fast emerging as the most valuable player in this season’s IPL, doing fabulously well with both the bat and the ball. Not only has been batting phenomenal, his bowling too has been very good, as his 3 for 16 against Kings XI Punjab suggests.
He has combined well with the other bowlers – Trent Boult, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma. Sunrisers Hyderabad are truly a complete team, with great strengths in both batting and bowling, and they are just about peaking at the right time.
But Royal Challengers Bangalore have three of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli and the mercurial Chris Gayle. Plus they have the world’s best fast bowler Mitchell Starc leading the bowling. So it would take some doing to get the better of RCB.
We expect an exciting clash as Sunrisers Hyderabad take on Royal Challengers Bangalore, and we hope more people turn up at the stadium. The crowd has been quite disappointing in this IPL, and certainly more could have been expected.
Watch Royal Challengers Bangalore play Sunrisers Hyderabad at 8:00 PM this Friday, live on Sony Six!
