Supergiants desperate to halt slide

Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)

Rising Pune Supergiants have not exactly lived up to their name in their start to life in the IPL. They won their first match, and have lost four in a row since then. They are in a situation unlike anything their captain MS Dhoni has experienced in his IPL career so far. His worries go deeper than just results, since his squad, unlike those he led at Chennai Super Kings, seems full of weaknesses. Injury to Kevin Pietersen has created a hole in Supergiants' batting, but they might not even seek a like-for-like replacement for him, since their bowling is an even bigger worry.

It's hardly the best time for Supergiants to play a Sunrisers Hyderabad side that has won its last three games. Sunrisers have done this without Kane Williamson, Yuvraj Singh and Ashish Nehra, who are recovering from various injuries. They have done it thanks largely to David Warner's form at the top of the order, and a bowling attack that is quickly showing to be one of the strongest in the competition.

If Supergiants can get Warner early, they could put pressure on a batting line-up that still has a few unconvincing nuts and bolts, but do they have the bowling to do so? Can Supergiants find a source of middle-order power-hitting to complement a top three of rather more classical rhythms? And perhaps most pivotally, how will they counter the Mustafizur Rahman threat?

Sunrisers Hyderabad WWWLL (most recent match first)
Rising Pune Supergiants LLLLW

Seven wickets at an average of 16.42. An economy rate of 5.75. A deceptive, rubber-wristed mix of cutters and fast yorkers that continues to confound batsmen a year after he burst into international consciousness. A whole lot could hinge on how Supergiants tackle Mustafizur Rahman's four overs.

On paper, Mitchell Marsh can provide the power that Supergiants' batting craves and give them a seam option that can be relied on to bowl four overs more often than not. For some reason, he has not featured since the team's second match, against Gujarat Lions on April 14. For how long can Supergiants keep him out of their side?

Ashish Nehra bowled during Sunrisers' warm-up session ahead of their match against Kings XI Punjab on Saturday. By the time they take on Supergiants, he will have had three more days to recover from his groin strain. If Nehra is fully fit, Sunrisers will have a difficult choice to make between him and Barinder Sran.

Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 David Warner (capt), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Aditya Tare, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Deepak Hooda, 6 Moises Henriques, 7 Naman Ojha (wk), 8 Bipul Sharma/Karn Sharma, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Ashish Nehra/Barinder Sran

Supergiants went into their last match, against Kolkata Knight Riders, with a seam attack made up entirely of allrounders. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium has given fast bowlers a bit of assistance, and that could prompt Dhoni to recall Ishant Sharma, possibly in place of the left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma, or Saurabh Tiwary, who did not get to bat against Knight Riders. Marsh could come in for Albie Morkel, who was expensive in his first game of the season on Sunday.

Rising Pune Supergiants: 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Steven Smith, 4 MS Dhoni (cast & wk), 5 Mitchell Marsh/Albie Morkel, 6 Thisara Perera, 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 R Ashwin, 9 & 10 Saurabh Tiwary/Ankit Sharma/Ishant Sharma, 11 M Ashwin

The three matches that Hyderabad has hosted so far have been relatively low-scoring, producing first-innings totals of 142, 142 and 143. The chasing team won all three times, comfortably, with 10, 15 and 13 balls remaining. There has been a bit of help for the new ball, generally, and grip for cutters and slower balls, magnifying Mustafizur's threat. Tuesday is expected to be a hot day, with a maximum of 43 degrees Celsius and no chance of rain.

Stats and trivia

• Warner (29) has the most 50-plus scores in IPL history. Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma have 28 each, while Suresh Raina has 27.
• Among bowlers who have sent down 10 or more overs this season, Mustafizur Rahman (5.75) and Rajat Bhatia (5.78) are the only two with an economy rate under six