In the 14th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will welcome Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad tonight i.e. Sunday, April 9 at 7:30 PM IST.
The Sunrisers have had a difficult start, having lost both of their games so far. While the competition is still in its early stages, they will need to get things back on track as quickly as possible. Their batting has been their biggest letdown, with scores of 131 and 121 in the two matches they have played, so far.
The top order has struggled, with players like Mayank Agarwal and Rahul Tripathi showing no desire to play a huge inning. Aiden Markram, got off to the worst possible start as he lost his wicket for a golden duck in his captaincy debut. The squad has a lot of batting depth owing to players like Washington Sundar, Abdul Samad, and Adil Rashid, but without a sound foundation, they would have nothing to build on. The Sunrisers boast one of the league’s best pace attacks, led by Fazalhaq Farooqi, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, and Umran Malik. With such deep batting and a resounding bowling lineup, it shouldn’t be difficult for them to make it to the winning ways that too at their home ground.
On the other hand, PBKS couldn’t have wished for a better start to their season, as they won both their games so far. A win here will propel them beyond Rajasthan Royals (RR), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Gujarat Titans (GT) to top the points table.
Prabhsimran Singh and Shikhar Dhawan constitute a strong opening pair, while Bhanuka Rajapaksa provides consistent support at number three. Jitesh Sharma, who has made solid starts in both innings, would be looking for scoring some good runs here. While Shahrukh Khan and Sikandar Raza haven’t been in the best of form, the Kings do have Sam Curran batting deeper down the order, who can hit into the stands. Arshdeep Singh and Nathan Ellis, the team’s new ball bowlers, have done well, with the latter scooping up four wickets in the game against Rajasthan Royals (RR). The spin bowlers, on the other hand, have struggled, with Rahul Chahar and Raza each taking only one wicket in the two games, so far. While the top-order has performed admirably, the Kings will need the middle-order batters to step up as they are set to challenge the 2016 IPL title holders.
Head-to-head:
SRH lead the head-to-head competition against PBKS, as both sides played 19 fixtures, the former won 13 games and lost six. In the last outing between the two sides, the Punjab-based franchise won against SRH by three wickets.
Where-to-watch:
TV: Star Sports Network
OTT: JioCinema