Intriguing clash on the cards between CSK and SRH

CHENNAI: Smarting from back-to-back losses, defending champion Chennai Super Kings will be desperate to return to winning ways when it faces a formidable but bruised Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL here on Sunday.

CSK had a good start to the season under new skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad but it has been toppled by Lucknow Super Giants twice in the last two games.

It was an unfamiliar sight for the Yellow Brigade fans to see the Chepauk fortress being breached as LSG knocked down a target of 210 with ease, thanks to Marcus Stoinis’s stunning hundred.

With four wins and as many losses in eight games, CSK will be keen to find its mojo back as things can quickly go south as the race to playoffs gets heated up.

Come Sunday, CSK will be up against Sunrisers Hyderabad, which has twice broken the record of the highest IPL total this season but is coming into the game following a failure of its ultra-aggressive batting approach against RCB. CSK’s batting has hovered around skipper Gaikwad, who pulled off only his second IPL century the other day, and the in-form Shivam Dube, who once again impressed with yet another fifty.

While Ravindra Jadeja too chipped in with the bat, the inconsistent form of top-order is a problem. Both Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell’s lack of runs is a concern and it has forced CSK to shuffle its batting order.

As for its bowling, the host had to toil hard against LSG, given the unexpectedly huge amount of dew at Chepauk that took its spinners out of the game and the visitor made full advantage of it during the chase.

While the CSK pacers managed to capture the four LSG wickets to fell, the spinners struggled to grip the ball, whereas the constant misfields did not help them either.

A high-flying SRH, on the other hand, was brought to the ground by RCB when it suffered only its third defeat of the season at home by 35 runs on Thursday.

However, it is unlikely to deter the SRH batters who would fancy their chances against an inconsistent CSK.

Against RCB, SRH’s top and middle-order failed collectively while chasing, forcing head coach Daniel Vettori to admit that the idea of going all out with the bat in the second innings might not be the right thing to do. There is unlikely to be any shuffling in the visiting batting order, but Aiden Markram might need to step up, having been dismissed in singles figures in the last two contests. In bowling, senior seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the only one who could be at the receiving end, having managed to claim just a wicket in the last three fixtures.

With the likes of Umran Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Akash Singh waiting in the wings, SRH may think of giving a chance to the Jammu pacer, who has the ability to bowl above 150 kmph.