Hyderabad: Raising over the hurdles the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) advanced into the finals to face the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) one more time.
The Cummins led Hyderabad and Iyer led Kolkata have face each other twice in this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL) and both the times it was the KKR that had an upper hand.
Gautam Gambhir mentored KKR is keen on repeating its earlier performances while the determined SRH look to take their revenge in today’s finals. The finals will begin at 7:30 pm at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai and will be live streamed on Star Sports and JioCinema.
With the teams looking to clinch the title, these players become crucial for their endeavor.
Mictchel Starc: The most expensive player in the history of IPL, has disappointed fans initially with his performance. But on a big stage he took charge and played a crucial role by picking 3 wickets including that of Abhishek early in the game. His performance in tonight’s game will be key for KKR.
Sunil Narine: The west Indies all rounder is going all out with his bat this season. Narine is loading his guns right from the first ball and putting pressure on the opposition. If he stays for more than 8 overs SRH will be under huge pressure.
Headshek: SRH opening pair Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma are the ones that are steering the ship this season. They took away many games from under the noses of opposition. Head is at number 4 with 567 runs and Abhishek at 9 with 482 runs in the top scorers list.
Iyer & Iyer: Both Shreyas and Venkatesh are key to the KKR middle order. In the first qualifier after both openers departed the Iyer duo took over and finished the game for the side.
Pat Cummins and Natarajan: With a not so strong bowling attack, Cummins and in-form Natarajan played a crucial role for the team in the final. Pat can give the much needed breaks while Natarajan can contain the runflow and put pressure on the opposition.
Klassan and Russel: Both the finishers Klassan for SRH and Russel for KKR will have a crucial role to play in the final. Just like in the last match, the Chepauk Stadium might have a pitch that is good for bowling in general and spinners in particular. So, the lower order batters Klassan and Russel will have their role to play.