The side from Hyderabad take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore in their opening game of the Indian Premier League this Monday. Here’s a look at what each team’s playing XI could look like come the 21st of September.
RCB undoubtedly possess two of the best batsmen featuring in the tournament. They always have. Kohli and de Villiers make Bangalore’s top order nearly immortal. And the addition of Aaron Finch to this star studded batting line up improves it even further. Opening alongside Finch, Devdutt Padikkal might get a hit, provided AB de Villiers dons the ‘keeping gloves. Moeen Ali might also start, for he adds to the balance of the team. The hard hitting Shivam Dube comes in at six, and the big buy Chris Morris follows. Umesh Yadav will take the new ball, along with the young Navdeep Saini. While Umesh Yadav is expected to bowl out by the 13th-14th over, Navdeep Saini might get a couple of overs at the death. It will be interesting to see how his young shoulders manage to handle the pressure. Chris Morris is likely to join Saini in handling the death bowling responsibility.
When it comes to the spinners, RCB possess arguably the best leggie of the tournament- Yuzi Chahal. Washington Sundar is also an interesting prospect and might get an over up front with the new ball. Moeen Ali can also chip in with his off-breaks if and when required.
Arguably the most celebrated opening pair of the Indian Premier League, David Warner and Jonny Bairstow start things up front for the Orange Army. An Indian middle order follows- with the likes of Manish Pandey, Virat Singh, Vijay Shankar and Abhishek Sharma featuring in the eleven. The Afghan duo of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan shall most likely take finishing duties for the Risers’ batting order.
The pace bowling department will be led by senior national team pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He will both open and close the Orange brigade’s bowling innings and will also mentor the other young pacers in the Sunrisers’ ranks. The Hyderabad think tank can only afford to play two of the four young pacers every game. It’s a difficult choice between Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Basil Thampy and Khaleel Ahmed. They can possibly adopt a rotation policy and check which pacer works best for them on which surface, but they still have a tough decision to make.
Three bowling all-rounders make up the spin department for the side from Telangana. Rashid Khan is joined by fellow Afghani Mohammad Nabi, while young Abhishek Sharma is also more than handy with his crafty left-armers.