HYDERABAD: Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai India have had identical starts to their IPL campaign this season. Both teams lost their first two games before bouncing back to post back-to-back victories in quite emphatic manner.
After being thrashed by Rajasthan Royals at home and then losing miserably to Lucknow Super Giants, SRH came back admirably against Punjab Kings. The eight-wicket win at home was followed up with a comfortable 23-run win against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens.
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MI too have had a similar story to tell thus far. They lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore by eight wickets and then fell to Chennai Super Kings. They found in Delhi Capitals, a team against whom they could make capital and posted a six-wicket win. MI then snuffed out KKR’s challenge as they won by five wickets.
Placed eighth and ninth in the points table, MI and SRH will be looking to get the much-needed two points to surge ahead. The hosts, however, look better placed to score as they have a more all-round game.
After three failures, England batter Harry Brook showed why the Sunrisers had splurged Rs 13.25 crore on him. Against KKR at the Eden Garden, Harry (100 no, 55 balls) brooked no challenge as he powered to the first century of the IPL season. The team management’s decision to promote Brook to open the innings has paid off as the England batter is more comfortable playing against the pacers. This was also evident at the Eden Garden as he toyed with the pacers and bided his time against the spinners. It remains to be seen how Rohit Sharma’s men counter the big-hitting prowess of Brook and on it will hinge the fortunes of Mumbai Indians.

With skipper Aiden Markram (87) and Rahul Tripathi (117) in good form with the willow, Sunrisers have thrived on their batting in the last two games. Heinrich Klaasen, who got to bat in just one game so far and scored an unbeaten 16, is another big striker of the ball and could pose a few problems to the rival bowlers.
The only bit of worry for the hosts on the batting front is the indifferent form of opener Mayank Agarwal, who has scored only 65 in four games. Will the management persist with him at the top or will they promote southpaw Abhishek Sharma up the order?
The arrival of pacer Marco Jansen (4 wickets) has transformed the SRH attack. The lanky South African has teamed up well with veteran medium pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3) and the duo have got the early breakthroughs in the last two games. Added to it is the spin bowling of Mayank Markande (6), who has been giving the rival batters some food for thought with his variations.
Mumbai Indians too have a formidable batting line-up. Hyderabad lad N Tilak Varma (177), Ishan Kishan (131), Rohit Sharma (107) have been among the runs for them this season. Suryakumar Yadav’s knock against KKR on Sunday evening is very significant for them as the India bat has been going through a really tough phase. Starting with the Australia T20 series, SKY has been facing a drought of runs and nothing seemed to be going right for him. Therefore, the 25-ball 43 not only restores the confidence of the Mumbaikar but also solidifies the MI middle-order, which has been a bit wobbly.
On the bowling front, Mumbai Indians have not been all that convincing as their pacers have struggled to make much of an impact. It has been veteran leggie Piyush Chawla (5), who has been at the forefront of not only keeping the rival batters quiet but also is the leading wicket-taker for his side.
MI will have a task on hand to contain the SRH batters, who would be keen to make use of the home conditions and surge ahead of their rivals in the table.