This year’s IPL has been exciting so far. It’s not that other seasons haven’t been. However, there’s one thing which is special about this IPL, it’s the competition. In the first 13 matches of the season, all the teams have at least won 1 and lost 1 match. The competition is fierce and you will never be able to predict who’s a clear favourite. In today’s match, we have the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to face up against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Match 14 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020. The match is held at Dubai International Stadium where both the teams have lost their matches there.
absence of Suresh Raina
Chennai Super Kings are giants of the IPL. There hasn’t been a season where Chennai hasn’t qualified for the playoffs. This season they can feel the absence of Suresh Raina who played a major part in CSK’s success over the years. They would be disappointed where the things stand as of now. However, this is one team you can never write off and certainly not so early in the tournament. MS Dhoni has proven to be a great leader. Shane Watson has looked good in phases and needs to convert his starts into bigger scores. We all know one good innings can bring him back in his groove. Ambati Rayudu is poised to return in the squad which should provide them the stability they need at the top order.
One change is inevitable for them is to replace Murali Vijay. With Rayudu fit, I don’t see Vijay getting one more chance in the playing XI. In the bowling department too, they are missing the likes of Dwayne Bravo. Lungi Ngidi hasn’t been in great touch. Sam Curran is expected to do more than he can deliver. You can see this year’s CSK team isn’t the best they can offer on the field. The core is shaken and if there’s anybody who can win with a relatively new team, it’s their leader MS Dhoni. It’ll be interesting how he manages this team to win upcoming matches. After being highly criticized playing for Net Run Rate (NRR), he’ll want to set his sights on wins.
why Kane Williamson wasn’t a part of the first 2 matches
Sunrisers Hyderabad is an underrated team. I have no clue why Kane Williamson wasn’t a part of the first 2 matches they played. The effect of Kane in that team is immense and we witnessed that in their match against Delhi Capitals. The problem with selecting 3 top order foreign players, there’s only foreign spot available and that needs to go to Rashid Khan leaving the middle order of Indians with not much international exposure apart from Manish Pandey. With the match in Dubai, I won’t be surprised if they leave Kane Williamson again in this squad to bring in Mohammad Nabi. The skipper, David Warner is an outstanding player. He has won the orange cap thrice in the IPL. He’s an aggressive leader and opens the batting with one of England’s best openers in limited overs cricket, Jonny Bairstow.
The top 3 are crucial for them when it comes to batting. Their problem lies with finishing. I admire Kane Williamson for his sharp mind but this is T20 cricket and you need guys at the end with the power game where they can go from ball 1. We saw glimpses of Abdul Samad in the last match but we’ll have to wait and see if he can do it consistently. They lack the six hitting talent and this puts additional pressure on the top 3 who have to perform in all their matches. Their main strength is their bowling. Rashid Khan, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and the upcoming new yorker bowling talent T. Natarajan can disrupt any batting line up on a given day. The match is in Dubai today and Sunrisers will enjoy bowling on this track.
Dream 11 Fantasy Lineup prediction
Fantasy cricket lovers will try their luck again to win some cash on Dream 11. I can’t guarantee 100% success with this lineup, however my intuition tells me this is a team tough to beat today.
CSK vs. SRH Dream 11 match lineup prediction – Shane Watson (c), Jonny Bairstow (vc), Ambati Rayudu, David Warner, Faf Du Plessis, Kane Williamson, Sam Curran, T. Natarajan, Rashid Khan, Deepak Chahar, Piyush Chawla. If Kane Williamson doesn’t start, you might consider Mohammad Nabi.
Probable Playing XI
Chennai Super Kings: Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Faf Du Plessis, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Kedar Jadhav, Deepak Chahar, Piyush Chawla, Josh Hazlewood
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner (c), Jonny Bairstow (wk), Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Priyam Garg, Rashid Khan, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Thangarasu Natarajan.
Battles to watch out for
Bhuvaneshwar Kumar vs. Shane Watson
Line and length is what Bhuvi is known for at the start of the innings. Shane Watson looks to dominate in the first 6 overs. A little beat of swing from length especially the one coming in and trap Watson. If Watson survives this scare, he can put on a big total today
Rashid Khan vs. Faf Du Plessis
Faf Du Plessis loves to sweep the spinners, however it’s not easy against Rashid Khan who is slightly quicker and can trap the batsman LBW before he can realise he’s late to the ball
Piyush Chawla vs. David Warner
David Warner would look to attack the spinners and Piyush Chawla is no ordinary leg spinner. The variations will come in handy and support from behind the stumps from MS Dhoni can lead up to an interesting contest between these two.
Match prediction
CSK to trump SRH in a closely contested game.
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