IPL 2015: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kings XI Punjab; Key Battles

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will lock horns with Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in match no 48 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2015 in Hyderabad on Monday. 

SRH have a chance to slip into the top four positions in the IPL 2015 standings if they manage to defeat KXIP on Monday. They are among the several other teams that are vying for a berth in the playoff stages. 

While KXIP are floored at the bottom of the table with 4 points from 11 matches and they will surely be playing for pride. They would look to spoil the party for the teams that are running for a berth in the Playoffs, but all looks bleak for them as they have now lost six games in a row and Mitchell Johnson and Shaun Marsh have also been released to cut back on expenses.

Let's have a look at some of the key battles from this high-voltage match: 

David Warner vs Sandeep Sharma: Warner has been in flying form and has already amassed 423 runs in 11 matches. This stadium in Hyderabad is his happy hunting ground as he averages over 74. He would look to add some more runs to his name, but he will have to go past Sandeep Sharma, who has bowled exceptionally well in this tournament.

Shikhar Dhawan vs Anureet Singh: Dhawan has also been instrumental in giving SRH the perfect starts to their innings's alongside Warner at the top of the order. He has also scored over 300 runs in this IPL and can be dangerous if allowed to settle down. Anureet, on the other hand has been one of the better finds of KXIP and has bowled equally well like Sandeep. His ability to hit the york length is commendable and would be difficult to score runs of.

Glenn Maxwell Vs Karn Sharma: Maxwell was out of form throughout the tournament until he played a 'Maxwell like' innings against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), but unfortunately ended up being on the losing side. He always fancies a leg spinner and this time it is going to be Karn Sharma. Although he has not bagged many wickets so far in IPL 2015, he has bowled well. A good contest to look forward to.

David Miller Vs Bhuvneshwar Kumar: Miller has had a scratchy tournament so far but he is one of the better finishers in this shorter format of the game. He can hit the ball a fair distance and SRH will be aware of his strength and would throw the ball to Bhuvneshwar Kumar who has bowled exceptionally well in this tournament so far. The latter is also SRH's highest wicket-taker and he has now taken at least one wicket in the last eight matches he has played for SRH.