Sunrisers bowl first against KKR in must-win clash to revive IPL campaign

Desperate to revive their campaign, last season`s finalists Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday won the toss and opted to field first against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens.

KKR made one change, bringing in Moeen Ali in place of pacer Spencer Johnson, while SRH fielded the same XI. Both the teams have lost two games and won one so far.

Sunrisers Hyderabad, after a record-breaking 286/6 in their season opener, have struggled to breach the 200-run mark in their last two games. Their ultra-attacking batting approach has led to collapses against Lucknow Super Giants (190/9) and Delhi Capitals (163 all out), resulting in consecutive defeats.

Pat Cummins` side will also need to reassess the strategy as they look to avenge their loss in last season`s IPL final.

The pace duo of Cummins and Mohammed Shami could pose a significant threat at Eden Gardens, where the India senior pacer, who represents Bengal at the domestic level, will be keen to make an impact in familiar conditions.

Meanwhile, KKR`s squad composition has raised questions following the mega auction. Their batting and bowling units have looked out of sync, with key players failing to deliver.

Notably, four players KKR released before the auction, former skipper Shreyas Iyer (PBKS), his deputy Nitish Rana (RR), Phil Salt (RCB), and pace spearhead Mitchell Starc (DC), have all excelled in the first 10 days of the IPL.

Skipper Ajinkya Rahane had initially downplayed concerns surrounding his team following a heavy defeat to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the season opener, insisting there was `no need to panic`. However, with two losses in three matches, considering KKR lost just three games across both home and away legs in their triumphant campaign in IPL 2024, the mood in the camp is slightly muted.

Teams

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Aniket Verma, Kamindu Mendis, Pat Cummins (capt), Simarjeet Singh, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Zeeshan Ansari

Kolkata Knight Riders XI: Quinton de Kock (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy

(With PTI inputs)