Shami to star in bottom of the table clash

Two teams that will be desperate to get back to winning ways meet as the Sunrisers Hyderabad take on Kings XI Punjab in a crunch battle at the bottom of the IPL points table. Kings XI will need to dust themselves down from their annihilation at the hands of the Chennai Super Kings whilst the Sunrisers need to find some consistency with the bat and ball to start seeing them climb the table.

Can’t string a good performance together

The most frustrating thing for fans of Sunrisers Hyderabad is the fact that they have shown how good they can be in parts so far this year, but haven’t been able to string a consistent set of good performances together. They find themselves in seventh place with just two wins from five so far, the only team with a worse record is the team they are playing in this one, Kings XI Punjab. Whilst the table is still fairly tight, and a couple of wins on the bounce can propel you up the table, the Sunrisers will won’t want to leave it too late to make a surge towards the top four and the play-off places.

Captain David Warner is the sides top run scorer so far this year, but even he will tell you that is isn’t firing on all cylinders so far. The same could be said about most of the Sunrisers batting, with Jonny Bairstow and Kane Williamson looking to prove their worth as overseas talisman again this year.

Onwards and upwards

KL Rahul’s 132* earlier on in the IPL seems a long time ago as Kings XI Punjab have failed to win a game since that match against RCB. Despite having two of the top three run scorers in the tournament this year in Rahul (302) and Mayank Agarwal (272), Kings XI find themselves rooted to the foot of the table with just one win from five. The form of these two at the top of the order is the reason that Chris Gayle, who has hit more sixes than anyone else in IPL history, is still watching on from the sidelines.

Both Sheldon Cottrell and Mohammed Shami have impressed with the ball, and Kings XI fans got a chance to see Chris Jordan last time out. But it wasn’t a good day for any of the bowlers, as they were torn apart at the hands of Faf du Plessis and Shane Watson.

Match Tip

In a game that could go either way, it will be hard to pick a winner in this one. One thing that has been consistent across the IPL this year is Mohammed Shami’s ability to take wickets with the new ball, so it’s reasonable to believe that will continue on Thursday.

I am backing Mohammed Shami to be the top wicket taker in the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab at 6.50 with Unibet.

Bet Mohammed Shami to take the most wickets in the match on Unibet