Sunrisers Hyderabad will want to fashion a fourth consecutive win in IPL 2016, while the Rising Pune Supergiants will be desperate to end a four-match losing streak. This IPL match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium promises plenty of entertainment, with the right team composition and right playing XI set to make a big difference in deciding the outcome of the match in Hyderabad.
SRH are coming off a hat-trick of wins, after initially starting the tournament with two losses, and with David Warner in the form that he is in, the RPS bowlers will not fancy bowling to the left-hander. Warner has led the team impressively, using his bowling changes quite well, while banking on the brilliant limited-overs skills of Mustafizur Rahman.
The bowling has done the trick for the Sunrisers in their last three matches, and considering the success they have enjoyed in the recent past, there looks like being no real reason for a change. Unless, of course, Ashish Nehra is passed fit for this match. Nehra has missed all three of the Sunrisers' wins with a groin strain, but the left-armer did take part in warmup sessions before the last match and has been seen in practice since as well.
If Nehra is fit enough to take the field against RPS on Tuesday, it will be a straight choice between the experienced left-armer and Barinder Sran, who, while being a touch expensive, has done really well.
Kane Williamson is not expected to be available for this match while Yuvraj Singh is still a fair way away from making a return, which means there should not be any change in the batting lineup, unless Ashish Reddy comes in for Aditya Tare.
While SRH look settled, as most teams do when they go on a bit of a winning run, the same cannot be said of the Rising Pune Supergiants. MS Dhoni's team, after an impressive opening IPL 2016 win over the Mumbai Indians, have struggled since, losing four matches in a row.
The team composition has just not been right for RPS, with the bowlers, in particular, failing to make an impact. RPS were also dealt a big blow with Kevin Pietersen ruled out of IPL 2016 with a calf injury. Dhoni decided to replace Pietersen with an all-rounder in the close loss to KKR, but Albie Morkel could not quite make as big an impact as he would have liked.
With Thisara Perera doing really well in his last couple of matches, it looks like the only way Mitchell Marsh will get a game is if Dhoni decides to bring the Australian in for Morkel. Ishant Sharma might get a swift return to the team, at the expense of Ankit Sharma, while Dhoni will hope R Ashwin starts bowling like the bowler he can be and form a potent partnership with his namesake Murugan Ashwin.
Expected playing XI: Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Eoin Morgan, Deepak Hooda, Naman Ojha, Aditya Tare, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Bipul Sharma, Barinder Sran, Mustafizur Rahman.
RPS: Ajinkya Rahane, Faf Du Plessis, Steve Smith, MS Dhoni (C), Saurabh Tiwary, Mitchell Marsh, Thisara Perera, Rajat Bhatia, R Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, M Ashwin.
