Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will take on the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL 2023 on Thursday at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. The Aiden Markram-led side will hope to carry forward their winning run after defeating Delhi Capitals in their last game.
They had earlier lost to DC in Hyderabad as the batters buckled under the pressure from the bowlers and SRH fell short of the 145-run target by 7 runs in the end. But SRH avenged the loss by defeating DC by 9 runs in Delhi and getting a much-needed win under their belt while also ensuring they don’t drop to the bottom of the table.
Abhishek Sharma laid the platform with an aggressive 67-run innings while Heinrich Klaasen provided the finishing touches with a brisk 53 off 27 balls to help SRH post a competitive 197/6. Mayank Markande then produced an excellent spell of 2/20 in four overs as the SRH bowlers held their nerve and survived Phil Salt (59 off 35) and Mitchell Marsh's blitzes (63 off 39) to break their three-match losing streak.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have won three and lost five of their eight games so far and are second from bottom on the table.
{{/usCountry}}Sunrisers Hyderabad have won three and lost five of their eight games so far and are second from bottom on the table.
{{/usCountry}}There have been flashes of brilliance from the SRH batters but none of them have made consistent contributions so far this season. Brook has scored 163 runs, Rahul Tripathi has scored 170 runs and Markram has scored 132 runs so far, Sharma has also chipped in with 139 runs.
Mayank Agarwal has scored 169 runs but at a paltry strike rate of 110. At the start of the innings, scoring runs quickly is of paramount importance in order to take full advantage of the powerplay and SRH have not been able to do that if Brook or Sharma don’t start well.
Heinrich Klaasen has done really well down the order this season and has ensured SRH have a strong finish to their innings. He has scored 153 runs so far.
Washington Sundar has been ruled out of the season with a hamstring injury, no replacement has been named yet. Sundar wasn’t having the best of seasons before his injury but was still an important member of the SRH team.
As for the bowlers, Mayank Markande has picked up 10 wickets so far this season at an economy of less than seven. Marco Jansen and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have picked up 6 and 7 wickets respectively. Umran Malik and Natarajan have also chipped in with 11 scalps between them. But Jansen, Malik and Natarajan have all been expensive so far this season.
Akeal Hosein came in for Jansen in the last game but Jansen is expected to come back into the side for the upcoming game.
Openers: Mayank Agarwal, Harry Brook.
Middle Order: Aiden Markram (c), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Rahul Tripathi.
All-Rounders: Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen.
Bowlers: Umran Malik, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Markande.
Impact Player: Abdul Samad or Mayank Dagar could be utilised as the Impact player by SRH against KKR