IPL 2018, Match 20, SRH vs CSK Match Prediction: Who will win the match today, Sunrisers Hyderabad or Chennai Super Kings?

The winning streak of the Sunrisers Hyderabad came to a halt the other evening in Mohali when they had to cope with the Chris Gayle assault. They were blown away by the merciless batting of the West Indian maestro and could never really recover after that to bounce back in the game.

However negative result at some stage is inevitable in a long tournament and they won’t like to put too much thought into that game. They will back themselves to return to winning ways as they make their way back home to lock horns with the table toppers Chennai Super Kings on Sunday afternoon.

CSK have surprised many people with their performance so far. They were not rated too highly by the pundits ahead of the tourney, but the way they have progressed, especially the batting prowess and depth they have shown, they are easily one of the contenders for the playoffs now.

Pitch and Conditions

The surface they prepare in Hyderabad often remains sticky and two-paced and if it’s of the same nature tomorrow, it will suit the bowling attack of both teams as they have plenty of bowlers who use knuckleballs and slower deliveries. With the ball not coming onto the bat, the spinners will have a say too as it won’t be easy for the batsmen to muscle them over the fence.

This is an afternoon game and there is a possibility it might not have dew at all. So it won’t be a surprise if a captain wins the toss and decides to bat first for a change on this wicket because with no dew in picture, the wicket, if anything, might get slightly tougher for batting in the second innings and chasing a score won’t be a cake-walk.

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Playing Combination

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Probable Changes – Chris Jordan out, Billy Stanlake

The Sunrisers made a surprising call the last game and brought in Chris Jordan for Billy Stanlake who had been giving them crucial breakthroughs in the tournament. While Jordan’s performance was pretty decent in the run-fest in Mohali as he went for an economy rate of only a little over 7 in his quota of 4 overs, he couldn’t get any wicket and it’s likely he will lose his spot to Stanlake.

Stanlake gives Hyderabad something different. The speed he is blessed with and the trajectory he bowls from a height of almost 6 ft. 10, it’s an awkward combination and really difficult to negotiate for some of the players who have never faced him in the past. Jordan, on the other hand, is someone who can be useful in the death, but he is not the perfect option for a captain to use as a game-breaker in the middle overs.

With Hyderabad already having a couple of death bowlers in Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Siddarth Kaul, they are better off having a Stanlake in the XI than a Jordan.

Predicted XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson (C), Manish Pandey, Shakib Al Hasan, Yusuf Pathan, Deepak Hooda, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul, Billy Stanlake

Chennai Super Kings

Probable Changes – No Change

CSK made the expected change against Rajasthan by replacing Harbhajan Singh with Karn Sharma and the leg spinner bowled really well in the limited opportunity he got. He wiped off Rajasthan’s tail coming on to bowl in the latter parts of the innings and will retain his spot in the XI without a shadow of doubt. The fact that he is pretty handy with the bat lower down the order also works in his advantage in terms of his selection.

Suresh Raina was declared fit for the Rajasthan game and once he was fit, he was always going to walk straight into the XI given how important a player he is for Chennai. Murali Vijay had to vacate the spot for the left-hander which meant Ambati Rayudu opened the innings with Shane Watson and while Rayudu had a failure at the top of the order, the team management will still prefer him ahead of Vijay in the next game.

Predicted XI: Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (C & WK), Sam Billings, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Karn Sharma, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Imran Tahir

Team Comparison

Hyderabad has issues with their batting. Because they are lacking proper strike force in the middle order, they almost always rely on Shikhar Dhawan to tee off at the top and if and when he doesn’t manage to do that, they find themselves into a tangle.

CSK contrarily has its entire batting unit in form at the moment. Out of the four games they have played so far, four different players have scored half-centuries, while Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu also have a 40 plus score to their names. Since all of them are hitting the ball crisply and are making impact, they not over-reliant on one particular individual which is always a good sign.

Talking about bowling of the two sides, it’s quite evident the hosts possess a lot of quality in that department. There is no real weak link in the Hyderabad attack. They hardly offer any freebies to the opposition and execute their skills ever so consistently to keep the batsmen at bay.

Chennai is not the weakest bowling attack either, but they are a conditions specific attack. They are suited for surfaces which are not true and where the ball holds up and goes up and down. They are undoubtedly capable of putting on a good show with the ball if the pitch is a little uneven tomorrow, but comparatively, they are not as equipped a bowling side as Hyderabad.

Probable Top Performers

Yusuf Pathan (Sunrisers Hyderabad), MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings)

Head to Head

Matches – 6, Sunrisers Hyderabad – 2, Chennai Super Kings – 4

The timing of the match: 04:00 pm IST

Broadcast Details

TV – Star Sports 1, Star Sports Hindi, Star Sports Select 1

Live streaming – Jio TV, Hotstar

The prediction is for the Chennai Super Kings to beat the Sunrisers Hyderabad in this match.

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