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Rediff.com  » Cricket » Sunrisers seek to make home advantage count against Knight Riders

Sunrisers seek to make home advantage count against Knight Riders

April 15, 2016 18:03 IST
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IMAGE: Sunrisers Hyderabad players during a practice session. Photograph: PTI.

Eyeing their first win of the season, Sunrisers Hyderabad would be looking to put up an improved show in their home ground where they lock horns with Kolkata Knight Riders, who would also be keen to get back to winning ways in the Indian Premier League.

Sunrisers suffered a 45-run loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore in their opening game with RCB's Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and Shane Watson having a blast with the bat against the hapless Hyderabad bowlers.

A victory against KKR, at the Rajiv Gandhi International cricket stadium, will go a long way in bringing Sunrisers' campaign back on track. 

Two-time title winners KKR also lost their last match, having started the tournament with a victory. 

IMAGE: Shikhar Dhawan and other Sunrisers Hyderabad players during a practice session. Photograph: PTI.

Sunrisers could not make it to the final four last year and the task that awaits them is again easier said than done as KKR, champions in 2012 and 2014, are one of the strongest outfits in the tournament. 

Though they suffered a reverse against Mumbai Indians, KKR were at its dazzling best against Delhi Daredevils. The Knight Riders will definitely get a boost if they include mystery spinner Sunil Narine in the playing XI, who was rested in the last game after making the long journey back after attending his father's funeral. 

Narine would make a handy combination with the chinaman bowler Brad Hogg. 

Even in the absence of Narine, Hogg and Andre Russel restricted Delhi Daredevils to a sub-100 total with their canny bowling.

IMAGE: Brad Hogg, John Hastings, Shakib Al Hasan and Robin Uthappa of the Kolkata Knight Riders during a practice session. Photograph: BCCI.

The Shahrukh Khan-owned outfit has some classy batsmen in its ranks as well, including Robin Uthappa, skipper Gautam Gambhir, Russel and Manish Pandey. 

The Sunrisers too boasts of a strong line-up and potential match winners in captain David Warner, Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Kane Williamson and Yuvraj Singh. 

It remains to be seen whether Yuvraj, who sustained an injury during the recent World T20, would be available for Saturday's match.

The form of some of the top-order batsmen, including Dhawan and Williamson, has been a matter of concern and they would look to come out all guns blazing. 

Sunrisers has some seasoned and also promising young players, including Ashish Nehra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Karn Sharma and new acquisition Mustafizur Rahman, in the bowling department.

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