Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals will face each other in the 55th match of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) on 5th May at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad
Match Preview:
Delhi Capitals will be desperate to arrest their home slump and revive their playoff hopes when they face a faltering Sunrisers Hyderabad in an away clash on Monday. After back-to-back losses in Delhi — first to RCB and then by 14 runs to KKR — DC’s campaign has started to wobble. But with 12 points from 10 games, they remain in the hunt.
What remains uncertain, however, is the status of captain Axar Patel. The all-rounder injured his left hand while fielding in the KKR match on April 30 and walked off the field. Despite the injury, he came out swinging with a gritty 43 off 23 balls. But his ability to bowl — especially on spin-friendly surfaces — could still be limited. Any absence or reduced role for Axar would be a major blow.
Delhi’s batting has shown signs of life. KL Rahul, their top scorer with 371 runs in nine matches, has been consistent, though his strike rate has come under question — especially after a 41 off 39 balls against RCB and a run-out for 7 against KKR. South African veteran Faf du Plessis finally found some form with a half-century in the last match, but questions remain over how well he’ll adapt to Hyderabad’s slower tracks.
Abhishek Porel has looked sharp at the top, racking up over 250 runs, but continues to fall short of big scores. Down the order, Vipraj Nigam has chipped in with some useful runs, offering late-innings firepower.
Delhi’s real strength, though, lies in their bowling. Mitchell Starc leads an attack that includes Chameera, Mukesh Kumar, and potentially a fit-again Axar. In the loss to KKR, Starc and Axar picked up five wickets between them, though the visitors still posted 200-plus — more a result of the pitch than poor bowling.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, meanwhile, are on the verge of elimination. Their latest 38-run loss to Gujarat Titans leaves them hanging by a thread. With a squad packed with experience — Pat Cummins, Mohammed Shami, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, and Jaydev Unadkat — their underperformance has been baffling.
Unadkat recently pointed to inconsistent bowling and unhelpful pitch conditions as key factors in SRH’s struggles. But excuses are running thin. With time running out, SRH need a near-perfect finish, and a win over Delhi is the bare minimum if they want to stay alive.
The Capitals have won three of their last five but can’t afford any more slip-ups. With playoff spots up for grabs and their season on the line, Monday’s clash in Hyderabad is must-win territory.
Probable Playing XIIS:
Delhi Capitals (probable XII): 1 Faf du Plessis, 2 Abishek Porel, 3 Karun Nair, 4 KL Rahul (wk), 5 Axar Patel (capt), 6 Tristan Stubbs, 7 Vipraj Nigam, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Mukesh Kumar/T Natarajan, 12 Ashutosh Sharma
Sunrisers Hyderabad (probable XII): 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Travis Head, 3 Ishan Kishan, 4 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 5 Aniket Verma, 6 Kamindu Mendis/Wiaan Mulder, 7 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Harshal Patel, 10 Jaydev Unadkat, 11 Mohammed Shami/Simarjeet Singh, 12 Zeeshan Ansari
Pitch and weather report:
After daytime highs of 37 degrees Celsius, players are hoping for more hospitable conditions. Despite being in the same square, the pitches have acted very differently. Four scores of more than 200 and a 190 have been easily chased down on the faster pitches.
Head-to-head record:
Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals have played each other 25 times, with Sunrisers Hyderabad winning 13 matches and Delhi Capitals securing 11 victories. One match between the two teams ended in a tie.
Prediction:
Given how SRH have been performing, Delhi are favourite to win this upcoming clash to keep their playoffs hope alive.
Where to Watch:
India: Star Sports Network, JioHotstar
Pakistan: Tapmad
Australia: Kayo TV, FoxTel Go
Bangladesh: T Sports, Toffee app
New Zealand: Sky Sports NZ
South Africa: SuperSport
Sri Lanka: Dialog
UK: Sky Sports, SkyGo
USA: Willow TV
Afghanistan: ATN
MENA: Cricbuzz
