HYDERABAD: The race for the playoff berths is entering the homestretch. Teams bunched in the middle of the table are looking to upset calculations of the top four with the rained off match between Chennai Super Kings and
Lucknow Super Giants further queering the pitch as the teams got a point each.
Sunrisers Hyderabad will also look to stay in the mix and the first match of the Saturday double header against
LSG should give an indication of which way the teams are headed.
IPL 2023 SCHEDULE | IPL 2023 POINTS TABLEThe hosts are upbeat after Abdul Samad’s last-ball heroics in Jaipur. They have had a few arduous sessions in the run-up to the game and hope to match the spring in their stride with some exciting fare at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
That the Sunrisers have won one out of their five home games is an indication of their struggle to finish matches, many of which were low-scoring chases. Barring the 72-run defeat to
Rajasthan Royals in the season-opener, their defeats to Mumbai (14 runs), Delhi (7 runs) and Kolkata (5) showed a clear lack of intent.
But Aiden Markram and Co. hope the tide has turned with the four-wicket win over Rajasthan, which made their away record – three wins from five games -look better than their show at home. One of the two away defeats was against Lucknow, a low-scoring encounter, which LSG won by five wickets.
The last three games have seen mixed results for LSG. They lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore by 18 runs in a match that saw tempers run high, a no-result against Chennai Super Kings an d a 56-run defeat to table toppers Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad.
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SRH vs LSG IPL 2023: Lucknow look to get back to winning ways against Hyderabad
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<p>Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will be itching to get back to winning ways against a buoyant Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) with young wrist spinner Ravi Bishnoi holding the key in a must-win IPL game in Hyderabad on Saturday.<br /></p>
<p>LSG, having lost two of their last three matches, will take a huge step forward if they happen to get past Aiden Markram’s team, which is languishing in ninth place in the 10-team table.<br /></p>
<p>The Krunal Pandya-led LSG is currently fifth with 11 points and is very much there in the play-off mix.<br /></p>
<p>However, on an Uppal track that has produced middling team totals, the role of spinners will be paramount, and that’s where Bishnoi, veteran ‘Impact Sub’ Amit Mishra and skipper Krunal himself come into the picture.<br /></p>
<p>The spin troika will have its task cut out against a Hyderabad line-up whose batting will be dependent on their three overseas recruits — Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen and Glenn Phillips. Phillips is a new entrant into the playing XI after Rs 13.25 crore buy Harry Brook’s underwhelming returns of 163 runs in first nine games.<br /></p>
<p>With his fast googlies Bishnoi, the team’s best bowler with 12 wickets, could trouble the overseas trio while Mishra’s guile and Krunal’s steady wicket-to-wicket bowling could be key against the ‘Orange Army’.<br /></p>
<p>If one compares man to man, LSG’s spinners are better placed since SRH already are hamstrung by Washington Sundar’s pull out from the tournament. The only spinner doing well for them consistently is Mayank Markande, who has 11 wickets from eight games at an economy rate of 7.31.<br /><br /><br /></p>
<p>Hyderabad, which looked a good team on paper, have suffered on many counts but primarily due to the loss of form of two premier Indian batters Mayank Agarwal (9 matches 187 runs) and Rahul Tripathi (10 matches, 237 runs). Their poor strike-rates of 114.02 and 127.41 tell the whole story.<br /><br /><br /></p>
<p>As far as LSG’s batting is concerned, regular skipper KL Rahul’s injury has proved to be a blessing in disguise with both Quinton de Kock and Kyle Mayers attacking from the word go.<br /><br /><br /></p>
<p>However, down the order Marcus Stoinis (239 at strike-rate of 139) and Nicholas Pooran (248 at 160), despite having the odd good knocks under their belt, need to do more.<br /></p>
<p>The away match will certainly provide the team with an opportunity to make optimum utilisation of their batting firepower, but they will also have the canny seam duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and T Natarajan to contend with.<br /></p>
SRH will look to add to their misery. Lucknow’s last win was a fortnight ago against Punjab and with 11 points, SRH will also be wary of LSG’s backlash. Quinton de Kock, who replaced KL Rahul at the top, looked in good touch and even 32-year-old left-arm spinner Swapnil Singh, part of IPL since 2008 with Mumbai Indians, PBKS and now LSG, finally got to play against Gujarat.
Krunal Pandya wrecked SRH with his double strike in one over in Lucknow. The hosts will remember that and that LSG have other wily spinners in Ravi Bishnoi and Amit Mishra.
Watch IPL 2023: Desperate LSG aim for big win against SRH
