Both SRH and PBKS tasted defeated in their previous encounters. One side did not deserve to win, the other should never have lost but invited it. While Hyderabad were handed an eight-wicket pasting by Delhi Capitals in their previous encounter, PBKS ended up on the losing side although they needed only eight runs to win in 12 balls, with eight wickets in hand.
In the points table, PBKS are at the seventh position with three wins and six losses. SRH remain last with one win from eight matches and it doesn’t look like they will be able to turn it around this season. T Natarajan being ruled out due to COVID has only made matters worse for SRH.
Looking at the team combination, SRH might replace Kedar Jadhav, who seems completely past his prime. With Natarajan unavailable, Hyderabad will be forced to play both Khaleel Ahmed and Sandeep Sharma.
SRH’s Predicted XI: Wriddhiman Saha (wk), David Warner, Manish Pandey, Kane Williamson (c), Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma
PBKS will be hurting really badly following the loss to RR. This is not the first time it has happened. Last season as well, they floundered more than once at the death. They are fast earning the tag of IPL chokers
As for their team combination, they must try and fit in Chris Gayle. But with Aiden Markram having batted well in the last match, that looks difficult. Moises Henriques and Nathan Ellis might get a look in.
PBKS’ Predicted XI: KL Rahul (c & wk), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Moises Henriques, Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Mohammad Shami, Ishan Porel, Arshdeep Singh
Top Fantasy picks for SRH vs PBKS clash: Wriddhiman Saha, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Arshdeep Singh
--Renin Wilben Albert