The Dubai International Cricket Stadium will host Match 14 of Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 when Chennai Super Kings (CSK) take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Friday.
CSK will be back in action after a gap of a week and will be hoping to make a winning return. While CSK kicked off their IPL 2020 campaign with a win over Mumbai Indians in the season opener, they lost their next two games against Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC). Coming to SRH, the David Warner-led side did not enjoy a solid start to their season as they lost against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). But SRH halted the two-match losing streak, beating DC in their third game of the tournament.
Originally tailored for the spin-friendly surface of MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, the Superking's bowling hasn't quite clicked either. Lungi Ngidi looked ordinary at best and was eventually replaced by Josh Hazlewood. The biggest disappointment for them so far has been Ravindra Jadeja who has not only failed to pick up wickets but also has been unable to keep the batsmen quiet.
Besides their bowling, it is their batting that seems to be crawling at the moment. Murali Vijay has looked dismal in all three matches gone and with Rayudu back, we expect Murali Vijay to sit out of the upcoming match. Rayudu smashed a brilliant half-century against Mumbai Indians before he had to sit on the sidelines due to an injury. With Faf du Plessis already doing well, Chennai Super Kings will once again get the much-needed strength in the middle-order. MS Dhoni has also been accused of not leading from the front given that he didn't come out to bat when the required run-rate was soaring in the early-teens and mere his presence the crease would have intimidated the bowlers.
On paper, CSK have an immaculate balance. The presence of Sam Curran and Ravindra Jadeja, who both can contribute in all three departments of the game, provides them with a pretty good balance. Curran has already exhibited his skills with a couple of match winnings performance and will be a key man going forward. Chennai Super Kings are coming into the upcoming match on the back of a long seven-day break. Given that they will also have Amabati Rayudu back to the fold, Chennai Super Kings are expected to have a lot clearer road ahead.
SRH finally managed to get off the mark on the points table as they cruised past Delhi Capitals. It took them to bring Kane Williamson back into the side as the move immediately paid rich dividends. Kane Williamson exhibited why he is rated as one of the best in the business with a brilliant knock in his first game in the tournament. Coming in that number four, the spot which SRH have struggled to find the right candidate for, Kane Williamson announced himself with a match-winning knock. Debutant Abdul Samad impressed with a brief cameo, bu Having said that, they still do not have any candidate as a finished and until Vijay Shankar comes back into the fold, they are likely to find themselves in trouble should they lose too many wickets too early.
The Sunrisers have always been known for their splendid bowling attack and their performance in the last match gave ample reasons for that. Although not a well-known bowler, T Natarajan bowled a brilliant spell of fast-bowling against Delhi Capitals, delivering yorkers with pinpoint accuracy. With Bhuvneshwar Kumar available as the other death bowler, SRH seems to have their death-bowling sorted. However, Khaleel Ahmed certainly is a weak-link in their bowling lineup.
Rashid Khan has always taken the center stage for the Sunrisers and his performance in the previous match justified that. Although he had not picked too many wickets up until the last match, he had done a fairly good job in keeping things quiet. With Abhishek Sharma available to assist him in the spin-bowling department, Sunrisers Hyderabad appear to be pretty well equipped to bowl on the surfaces on offer in UAE.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have perhaps been one of the most consistent sides in the competition in recent times. David Warner, Kane Williamson, and Jonny Bairstow have been fantastic for them, but its the Indian batsmen they have lacked. Barring Manish Pandey, they still do not have anyone who has the experience and skillset required in the competition.
Weather Conditions
It's going to be a sunny day with no chance of rain playing spoilsport for the CSK vs SRH IPL 2020 tie. The day's high will be around 38 degree Celsius while the minimum temperature will be around 38 degree Celsius. Humidity levels throughout the match are likely to hover around 63% which will make it quite hard for players from both sides.
Pitch Report
The pitch at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium has provided equal opportunities to both batsmen and bowlers this year. Across all the matches played at this venue, the average first innings score has been 179. The pitch is good for batting in the first half but in the second part, it helps the spinners.
Toss Prediction
This ground has an immaculate record in the favor of the team batting first. In all of the six matches played here, the team batting first eventually finished at the top. The pitch is likely to slow down so much that the dew might not have as much an impact as expected. We expect the captain winning the toss to bat first and put a total of at least 175 runs on board.
Head-to-Head and Stats:
Head to head: Matches Played: 13
Chennai Super Kings: 10
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 3
Approaching Milestones
Dhoni needs to clear the ropes twice to become the third Indian to tally 300 sixes in T20s; and 24 runs to complete 4500 IPL runs.
Rayudu needs 45 runs to complete 1000 IPL runs for CSK.
Manish Pandey requires 69 runs to complete 3000 IPL runs.
David Warner needs 55 and 142 runs respectively to complete 500 IPL runs against CSK and 3500 IPL runs overall.
Likely XIs:
Chennai Super Kings: Shane Watson, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis, Ambati Rayudu, Sam Curran, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Piyush Chawla, Imran Tahir/ Josh Hazlewood.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner (capt), Jonny Bairstow (wk), Manish Pandey, Kane Williamson, Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Priyam Garg, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Khaleel Ahmed.
Players to Watch Out For:
Chennai Super Kings: Watson, Faf du Plessis, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner, Jonny Bairstow, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan, Abhishek Sharma
Match Odds:
Chennai Super Kings: 1.72
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 2.00
SantaBanta's Winner Prediction: Chennai Super Kings
IPL 2020 Winner Live Odds:
Mumbai Indians - 4.5
Royal Challengers Bangalore - 5.5
Kolkata Knight Riders - 6.5
Delhi Capitals - 6.5
Rajasthan Royals - 7.5
Chennai Super Kings - 8.5
Sunrisers Hyderabad - 9
Kings XI Punjab - 13
Match Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Time: 7.30 PM IST
TV: Star Sports Network.
Live Streaming: Disney+ Hotstar VIP
