IPL 2021 Match 31: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians Preview

Match Details

Date: 4 May 2021

Time: 7:30 PM (IST)

Venue: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi

Live Ball-by-Ball Commentary: SportsTiger App

Preview:

After a really action-packed first half of the season in IPL 2021, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians lock horns to begin their second leg. Both the sides have had rather contrasting campaigns so far. While MI find themselves in the fourth spot with 4 wins in 7 matches, SRH are reeling at the bottom of the table with only 1 win in 7 matches so far.

When the two sides met few days back, a dramatic collapse from the Orange Army handed Rohit Sharma's side a crucial 13-run win. Chasing a target of 151, SRH went from 102/3 in 14 overs to 137 all-out in 19.4 overs, which started the crisis for David Warner's side this season. Their campaign have gone from bad to worse since that defeat as the Aussie was sacked as the captain and also dropped from the playing XI in the previous game.

After a heavy loss against RR, Kane Williamson will be hoping to turnaround SRH's season in the second half but it won't be easy. Their first opponents will be in the form of defending champions Mumbai Indians who are coming to this contest on the back of two emphatic victories. Riding high on confidence after Kieron Pollard's heroics against CSK, the stage is perfectly set for an exciting battle between confident MI and new-look SRH side in Delhi on Tuesday.

Team News

Sunrisers Hyderabad:

Kane Williamson's side will have a few major cause of concerns coming to this contest, especially in regard to the form of Mohammad Nabi and Vijay Shankar. The Afghan all-rounder, who replaced David Warner, failed to make an impact and is likely to be replaced by Jason Holder or Jason Roy. However, it will be interesting to see if the Warner can make a return to the playing XI.

Mumbai Indians:

Rohit Sharma's side have been quite balanced in all departments and are likely to retain most of the players who featured in the previous contest against CSK. James Neesham, who did not have a great debut, is expected to get another opportunity. The only change which could take place is Jayant Yadav replacing Dhawal Kulkarni.

Head to Head:

Matches Played - 17

Sunrisers Hyderabad - 8

Mumbai Indians - 9

Key Players

Jonny Bairstow:

The SRH opener is the leading run-scorer for his side this season, with 248 runs to his name in 7 matches so far. Bairstow is the vital cog for the Orange Army at top of the order, especially in the absence of Warner. Against a lethal bowling line-up of MI, the 31-year-old could be the most important player for SRH as his knock can prove to be the deciding factor.

Quinton de Kock:

The elegant left-handed batsman has finally found his form in Delhi, with two decisive knocks of 70* and 38 at top of the order. Quinton de Kock is going to be crucial for MI to give an explosive start against SRH with Rohit Sharma still not looking at his absolute best.

Rashid Khan:

The SRH leg-spinner has been the lone warrior in the bowling department, with 10 wickets in 7 games. While his teammates have leaked runs, Rashid has an impressive economy of 6.14. It will be interesting to see how Kane Williamson uses the services of his lead spinner against an explosive batting line-up of MI.

Probable Playing XI

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Manish Pandey, Jonny Bairstow (w/k), Kane Williamson (c), Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, Jason Holder, J Suchith, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma