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IPL 2021: SRH Predicted XI vs KKR- Will Saha open with Warner or will SRH persist with Bairstow?
Many former cricketers and pundits believe they have just the right team this year to win the elusive IPL trophy for the second time.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will locks horns with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in their first Indian Premier League 2021 (IPL 2021) game on Sunday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. KKR--who had a good IPL 2020 mini-auction--will believe they have an equally strong side, if not more, to get off the mark on a winning note. On the other hand, SRH starts off this competition as one of the favourites to win the annual cash-rich league.
IPL 2021, SRH vs KKR - LIVE SCORE AND UPDATES!
Many former cricketers and pundits believe they have just the right team this year to win the elusive IPL trophy for the second time. Chennai is going to be a slow, spin-friendly wicket. With the likes of Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi in their ranks, SRH may prove to an uphill task for the opposition.
READ | SRH vs KKR Preview, IPL 2021: Chance for Warner & Morgan to find winning combination
Here is our predicted XI of SRH against KKR:
1) David Warner: Captain David Warner comes into this tournament on the back of some groin issues. He missed some part of India's tour of Australia due to the same issue and admitted that he may have rushed his return. However, he now states that he is fine and raring to go. SRH will hope Warner comes good from the get-go. He is an extremely experienced campaigner, who has amassed 5254 runs in 142 IPL matches. He is currently third in the top run-getters in the history of the league, behind Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina.
2) Wriddhiman Saha: Bengal wicketkeeper-batsman was in excellent form last year, scoring 214 runs in just 4 matches at an average of 71.33. He is a senior batsman of the squad with a lot of experience under his belt. Since SRH will be playing a majority of their games in Chennai and Delhi, both slow and turning tracks, Saha's experience of playing spinners in home conditions may the reason behind him being preferred over English batsmen Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow.
3) Manish Pandey: SRH's mainstay Manish Pandey will continue to bat at number. With 425 runs in 16 matches last season, Pandey was the franchisee's second-best batsman. Pandey is a smart cricketer who knows when to hold back and when to go big. Moreover, he is a gun fielder, making him a huge asset for the team.
4) Kane Williamson: New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is an improved T20 batsman. For the longest time, he was only touted as red-ball great but last season he proved everyone wrong with his batting exploits. With 317 runs in 12 matches, he was SRH's fourth-highest run-scorer in the UAE. A dependable figure in the dugout, Warner will also look towards him for assistance in decision-making.
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5) Kedar Jadhav: An attacking middle-order batsman Kedar Jadhav, has represented Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), Royal Challengers Bangalore & Chennai Super Kings in the previous editions. At the IPL 2021 auction, he was bought by SRH for his base price of ₹2 crore. Jadhav, who scored 62 runs in 8 games, received a lot of flak for his poor performances in IPL 2020. Come the first game, he would look to redeem himself this year. Keeping the surfaces SRH will be playing on in mind, an in-from Jadhav could prove to a match-winner on multiple occasions.
6) Vijay Shankar: The fight for this sixth spot is extremely heated up in the SRH camp. They have Vijay Shankar, Abdul Samad, Virat Singh, and Abhishek Sharma. However, it's highly likely that Shankar may get to start the tournament ahead of the other three uncapped players. Shakhar has plenty of IPL experience and some international exposure under his belt. He's a handy all-rounder who has the potential to go big at the death. Let's not forget, he was India's go-to all-rounder when Hardik Pandya wasn't around.
7) Rashid Khan: The heart of this team lies in leg-spinner Rashid Khan. The Afghan spinner, without a shred of a doubt, is one of the most dangerous bowlers in the Indian Premier League currently. In the last season, he was the sixth-highest wicket-taker with 20 wickets in 16 matches, including the best bowling spell of 3/7. He was the second-most successful spinner in the edition, one behind Yuzvendra Chahal. With IPL returning to India, Rashid Khan is expected to be his economical best. Last year, he went for less than six runs an over (5.37).
8) Mohammad Nabi: The fourth and final overseas spot goes to the Afghanistan all-rounder. Mohammad Nabi is a right-hand middle-order batsman and a clever off-spinner who has often contributed to his nation, Afghanistan, and Sunrisers Hyderabad's success with clinical performances. He only played one match last season but, and again, he will be extremely useful on that Chepauk track.
9) Bhuvneshwar Kumar: The 2016 and 2017 Purple Cap winner enters the tournament on a serious comeback trail. Having featured in the India vs England white-ball leg, after a long injury layoff, Bhuvi showed just why he's considered one of the most skillful white-ball bowlers in the world currently. He returned with stellar economy rates in both the T20I and ODI series. Even though he didn't pick up a lot of wickets in the T20I series, which happened before the ODIs, he was the second-highest wicket-taker for in the 50-over format. Expect him to be among wickets in this edition as well.
10) Sandeep Sharma: SRH have another quality swing bowler in medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma. He usually shares the white-ball duties with Bhuvi and has been a regular member of every franchise he's played for. He gets his captain the wickets upfront and with 14 wickets in 12 games, he was the club's third-best bowler. He is expected to continue sharing the load with the Indian international.
11)T. Natarajan: Talking about Indian internationals, the final place will be filled by the country's current bowling sensation, T. Natarajan. In 2017, when he was picked up erstwhile Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings), he became the highest-paid uncapped Indian player. His breakthrough season, however, arrived in IPL 2020 in the UAE when the Salem-born left-arm pacer pocketed up 16 wickets in 16 games. During the Australia tour, he made his debuts in all three formats of the game and is known for his pinpoint accuracy in the death overs. Once again, SRH will rely on his prowess of bowling yorkers and tight over at the fag end of the innings.
