Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins has elected to bowl first against Delhi Capitals on what appears to be a batsman-friendly pitch in Hyderabad, as part of the IPL 2025. Sunrisers made several changes following their recent match against Gujarat Titans. Nitish Kumar Reddy was omitted due to illness, while Mohammed Shami, who had a challenging performance conceding 48 runs in three overs, was also benched. This opened up an opportunity for Sachin Baby to play his first game of the season, and Abhinav Manohar made a return to the middle order. Among the overseas players, Eshan Malinga was chosen over his fellow Sri Lankan Kamindu Mendis. Travis Head is poised to be utilised as SRH’s Impact player if needed.
Delhi Capitals stuck to their current strategy of fielding a bowler-heavy squad, despite batting first, indicating a tactical deviation from the more common balance between batters and bowlers. T Natarajan, a familiar face for SRH fans, made his first appearance for DC, replacing Mukesh Kumar. Delhi’s spin attack has been bolstered by Kuldeep Yadav, Vipraj Nigam, and captain Axar Patel, contrasting SRH’s choice of a sole spinner, Zeeshan Ansari.
Katey Martin and Ambati Rayudu weighed in on the challenges posed by DC’s spin-heavy approach, particularly emphasising the bounce and angle generated by Mitchell Starc as a significant test for batters like Travis Head. “Starc’s angle and bounce are challenging for any batter; Head’s adaptability and technique will be crucial if he comes in as the Impact player,” said Martin.
The starting line-ups illustrate each team’s tactical approach, with SRH stacking their playing XI with predominantly fast bowlers, while DC place their faith in a more diverse bowling attack.
Sunrisers Hyderabad:
1. Abhishek Sharma
2. Ishan Kishan (wk)
3. Sachin Baby
4. Heinrich Klaasen
5. Aniket Verma
6. Abhinav Manohar
7. Pat Cummins (capt)
8. Harshal Patel
9. Zeeshan Ansari
10. Eshan Malinga
11. Jaydev Unadkat
Impact Subs Bench: Mohammed Shami, Harsh Dubey, Travis Head, Rahul Chahar, Wiaan Mulder
Delhi Capitals:
1. Faf du Plessis
2. Karun Nair
3. Abishek Porel (wk)
4. KL Rahul
5. Axar Patel (capt)
6. Tristan Stubbs
7. Vipraj Nigam
8. Mitchell Starc
9. Dushmantha Chameera
10. Kuldeep Yadav
11. T Natarajan
Impact Subs Bench: Ashutosh Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sameer Rizvi, Mukesh Kumar
Both teams are set to showcase unique strategies in pursuit of victory, promising an engaging contest for cricket fans.
