Two losses and a win – reads the record of both the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Delhi Daredevils after their respective three games in IPL 2015. One team will go to 2-2, four points and up to third in the table come Saturday when SRH face off against DD in Visakhapatnam.
The Daredevils were extremely unlucky not to come away with wins in their first two games – against CSK and the Rajasthan Royals – but they finally found their groove for the entire match to pick up their first win in 12 IPL matches – and with it avoid an unwanted record -- courtesy an authoritative outing against the Kings XI Punjab.
Yuvraj Singh's form would have been the most pleasing aspect in that win, with the left-hander scoring a half-century alongside Mayank Agarwal to chase down 166.
"It was a big relief, not in terms of getting runs but in terms of the team winning after a string of losses which was hurting the team badly," said Yuvraj. "We played good cricket in the first two games that we lost.
"We needed one win for a morale boost. It was great determination shown by the boys to get those two points and hopefully we can get a few wins from now. We are just going to go out there and be positive.
"It is about winning games and getting those two points. The more games you play [and win], the more the team looks settled. If you don't win too many games there is an uncertainty that the guys are not settled and you have a lot of changes. As we win a lot of games, I am sure the team will look better. We look settled at the moment. Let's see what happens in the future."
"Settled team" can be used to describe very few sides in IPL 2015, and the Daredevils, despite their win in the last game, and the Sunrisers Hyderabad are far from it. Both sides have plenty of tweaking to do if they are to push for a place in the playoffs and in order to get that confidence going, a win on Saturday will be essential.
While DD are coming off a win, the same cannot be said of SRH, who were extremely poor with the bat and paid the price with a defeat to the Royals. The Sunrisers bowlers did extremely well to take the game, a game in which RR were chasing just 128, to the final ball of the match, but the result, to be fair, was never in doubt.
In a couple of games this season, either the batting has failed or the bowling, and getting both gelling together like it did in the win over the Royal Challengers Bangalore will be essential if the Sunrisers are to give the Vizag crowd something to smile about.
Where to Watch Live
Get the Match Report and Score HERE
The IPL 2015 game is set to begin at 4 pm IST (11.30 am BST, 6.30 am ET) with live coverage in India provided by Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony Aath and Sony Kix. Viewers in India can also catch the match via live streaming online on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Audience in the UK and Europe can watch the game live on Sky Sports 4, while the match can also be live streamed on Sky Go and Watch Sky Sports. Viewers in US can catch the game online on ESPN Cricket, while TV coverage will be on ESPN.
