Sunrisers, Kings XI look to keep slump at bay
Having lost their last two matches in the IPL, both teams are in need of a fresh start
The Preview by Sreshth Shah
16-Apr-2017
Match facts
Sunrisers Hyderabad v Kings XI Punjab
Hyderabad, April 17, 2017
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)
Hyderabad, April 17, 2017
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)
Head to head
Overall: Sunrisers Hyderabad go into the tie leading 6-2 and are chasing their fifth consecutive win against Kings XI Punjab. At home, Sunrisers lead the head-to-head 3-1.
Last season: Sunrisers won both games, including a final-over finish in Chandigarh, where Kings XI lost despite a supreme 96 from Hashim Amla.
In the news
Kings XI captain Glenn Maxwell made it clear after their 51-run loss to Delhi Daredevils that "everything was a weakness" and that it was getting to the point where he would have to pick "uncapped players", perhaps indicating the seniors weren't performing up to potential. David Miller and Eoin Morgan might not feel too comfortable with their places in the XI too if Martin Guptill and Shaun Marsh have recovered from injuries.
Mustafizur Rahman was left out of the Sunrisers XI last match, but it would be surprising to not see him return considering his success in Hyderabad - seven wickets at 25.85 and an economy rate of 6.96 in the IPL. Last year, he also picked up 2 for 9 in four overs against Kings XI. It could all mean Ben Cutting, who has been good but not extraordinary, getting the axe.
The likely XIs
Sunrisers Hyderabad 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 David Warner (capt), 3 Moises Henriques, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Deepak Hooda, 6 Naman Ojha (wk), 7 Ben Cutting/Mustafizur Rahman, 8 Bipul Sharma, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Rashid Khan, 11 Ashish Nehra
Kings XI Punjab 1 Hashim Amla, 2 Manan Vohra, 3 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Glenn Maxwell (capt), 6 David Miller, 7 Axar Patel, 8 KC Cariappa, 9 Mohit Sharma, 10 Varun Aaron, 11 Sandeep Sharma
Strategy punt
Stats that matter
Sreshth Shah is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo