Cracker of a match likely

Cracker of a match likely
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Highlights

After beating Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will be aiming to hunt down Gujarat Lions in front of the home crowd at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium here on Friday.

Hyderabad: After beating Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will be aiming to hunt down Gujarat Lions in front of the home crowd at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium here on Friday.

In their previous showdown, Sunrisers Hyderabad scored a comprehensive ten-wicket win in an away match. The win fresh in their minds and the players coming from nearly a week rest, they will hope for an encore on home turf.

What has come in their favour is the inspirational presence and flair of their skipper, David Warner whose run-getting has been, by far, the best among every other batsman in the championships, thus far.

His partner Shikhar Dhawan is gradually finding his rhythm while Kane Williamson’s has solidified the batting order. If Yuvraj Singh, who is likely to play the coming engagement, can chip then their batting coordination is nearly complete. In addition to Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the host will look up to the spinners, who did a good job in the last couple of matches.

On the other hand, Gujarat Lions are second in the points table but they are coming here after defeats against Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Daredevils. They have a good opening pair in Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum who can demolish any opponent on a particular day. With Aaron Finch at No 3, it boasts of any captain’s dream batting order. But there is a dilemma over the inclusion of Finch, who was replaced by Dwayne Smith, following a couple of failures.

Captain Suresh Raina has contributed 252 runs in the last nine matches while Dinesh Karthik has also strengthened the middle order. However, their bowling looks ordinary, though Praveen Kumar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Bravo and Shivil Kaushik can be a batsman’s nightmare if they find their rhythm.

By Subhash Chandra

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