The top three highest innings totals in IPL history belong to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Two of those were scripted at their home venue, Hyderabad, and the third one on that list was against Mumbai Indians (MI) last year. For Hyderabad, it was the manifesto moment of their brute approach, which eventually landed them in the final that season. Their approach was so convincing, so seamless, that no one dared doubt its sustainability, though everyone knew it was foolish to bank on something as fickle as aggression.
This season has proved them right. SRH are now wandering at the bottom rungs of the table, with a multitude of issues stifling their survival chances, chief among them is their batting approach. Their openers haven’t fired, which was practically a prerequisite of their strategy. And the middle order couldn’t really wrap its head around the mess that it came face to face with. All in all, they’ve collapsed more often than they’d like to admit.
But if history has a knack for repeating itself, can SRH count on it doing them a favour against the same opposition, at the same venue? MI got off to their characteristic slow start and are now inching back into the hunt. They defeated SRH in the reverse fixture in Wankhede just last week, and a win here would be the most-needed for them here as it will hoist them to the third spot, away from all the devils at the bottom of the table.
Team Overview:
Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma did not look nearly as clueless against MI at Wankhede as they had in the earlier fixtures. Abhishek’s century and Head’s half-century against PBKS seem to have done wonders for their morale. If they manage to mimic a bit of that magic on Hyderabad’s batting-friendly surface, they might just make life easier for themselves.
This brings us to SRH’s other problem, which is likely to be amplified at their home venue, and it’s their bowling attack. Their fast bowlers have not looked incisive. Age seems to be catching up to Mohammad Shami, and Pat Cummins averages 51.66 at home. Add to that the sorry state of their spinners, who have the worst bowling average amongst all teams this season, and it’s an entirely new poutpourri of concerns.
For Mumbai Indians, Rohit Sharma’s bat finally decided to chip in with some runs, which helped Mumbai notch a win against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). For the longest time this season, the lack of contributions from the top order plagued MI, but things seem to be shifting for the better now. The batters are finally finding form, which is being complemented by bowlers doing their job well. As the stakes get higher, MI are seemingly finally getting themselves together.
Head-to-Head Matches:
Hyderabad and Mumbai have encountered each other 24 times. Out of these, Mumbai have won 14 while Hyderabad defeated them in 10 matches.
Weather and Pitch Report:
Hyderabad offers little for bowlers to take shelter in. The deck has plenty for batters to exploit. In four games played here this season, two saw both teams score more than 240 runs. The games that did not touch these heights, the run rate went over 9 runs in at least one innings. SRH will really fancy the venue gives them another chance to go bang-bang with the bat.
Prediction:
If SRH’s openers fire, the game is theirs. But currently, MI seem more complete and might just chip away with a crucial win.
Where to Watch:
India: Star Sports Network, JioHotstar
UK: Sky Sports, SkyGo
USA: Willow TV
Australia: Kayo TV, FoxTel Go
Bangladesh: T Sports, Toffee app
New Zealand: Sky Sports NZ
Afghanistan: ATN
South Africa: SuperSport
Sri Lanka: Dialog
MENA: Cricbuzz
