CSK to clear the ropes in bottom of the table tie

Two teams that were tipped as hot favourites at the start of the competition find themselves languishing near the bottom of the table. A key battle in Match 14 of this year’s Dream11 Indian Premier League as the Chennai Super Kings take on Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Leaving it too late

CSK will be grateful for their six day break in between matches as they need time to get away and re-think the ways that they are going to start picking up points. Only one win from their first three and that was a narrow win in the opening match of the tournament against the Mumbai Indians. From the outside looking in, it seems like they are mis-managing their run chases, leaving too many runs for their middle to lower order to hit at the end of the innings to win the game. In the past, the legendary MS Dhoni has been capable of performing miracles to finish off games, but this tactic hasn’t worked so far this year.

Whilst the experienced opening pair of Murali Vijay and Shane Watson have got them off to some solid starts, they both have rather pedestrian strike rates of 121.42 for Watson and 74.41 for Vijay. This conservative start to the innings traditionally only pays off when at least one of the openers bat deep in to the innings, and that hasn’t happened with either for CSK. The form of Faf du Plessis with the bat is very pleasing, with the South African batsman scoring 173 runs at an average of 86.50 so far, but CSK will need to improve if they are to pick up points in this one.

Kane to the rescue?

I don’t think it takes a genius to work out that bringing Kane Williamson back in the starting XI for their last game helped the Sunrisers record their first win in this years IPL. The New Zealand captain hit 41 to stabilise what has been a shaky middle order so far for the team from Hyderabad. His runs and a return to some sort of form from openers David Warner (45) and Jonny Bairstow (53) helped get the Sunrisers up to an about par 162 last time out against the Delhi Capitals. If all three of their star overseas batsmen improve on what they achieved on Tuesday, the fortunes of Trevor Bayliss’ team could soon change.

Another reason for their better performance against the Delhi Capitals is the return to form of Afghani mystery spinner Rashid Khan. 3-14 from Khan with 13 dot balls was his best return in this year’s IPL and will please the Sunrisers, because an in form Rashid Khan is one of the most destructive bowlers in the world.

Match Tip

Whilst both teams are similar on paper, one area where there has been a difference this year is the number of maximums hit. Just the 11 hit by the Sunrisers in comparison to 22 from CSK.

I’m backing the Chennai Super Kings to hit more sixes than Sunrisers Hyderabad at 1.96 with Unibet.

Bet Chennai Super Kings to hit more sixes on Unibet