With the tournament is getting into an exciting phase, KXIP is in the midst of nowhere. They haven’t reaped productive fruit so far in this tournament, apart from their opening batters’ heroic performances. On the other side, SRH, with their new approach to the T20 game, is still waiting to prove their match-winning ability.
Without much ado, let’s get into predictions for the Match No.22 of IPL 2020: SRH vs KXIP.
Prediction on the top run-scorer.
Nicholas Pooran is monstrous along the leg side. The Punjab team’s opening pair makes his work even easier as he always likes to go against the opponent bowlers. Again, Nicholas Pooran made some phenomenal shots in the last match, especially the six he made of Sam Curran’s stock delivery towards the mid-wicket region showed what kind of a power hitter Pootan is. But the West Indian wicket-keeper failed to pull his team over more than deserved score. The way he played the spinners throughout the tournament showed us a hint of how brutal he can be against the spin bowlers. He isn’t a great batter against the speed that clocks north of 140 kph continuously. Even though SRH possesses Rashid Khan in the middle overs, Nicholas Pooran looks the best batter to make more runs in this match with the bat.
Prediction on top wicket-taker
Rashid Khan is making a strong statement through this tournament. Rashid Khan is more of a finger spinner than a wrist spinner. His unique skill set and the match-winning attitude changed how the leg spinners are looked at in the T20s. His mysteries conquered the T20 tournaments around the globe. At the age of 20, his impressive stint with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2017 and 2018 took him places. And, in the International stage, he literally ruled the T20 records of the 2010s. The Afghan leg-spinner’s racy shoot to fame on the International arena has put his nation into the cricketing world’s limelight. Technically, Rashid Khan’s strengths are his fast hands and sharp turns. He is someone who bowls more googly than the leg breaks. If you look at his bowling in a close watch, you could find out that he approaches all his variations differently. The grip, the release, and the body alignment changes according to the variety he prefers to bowl. All these factors combine together to be a greater obstacle to play against the mighty batting of KXIP.
Prediction on Who will win the match?
Batting wise, SRH does not possess the aggressive intent like the one they had in the last three seasons. The top-order batters are fine with their job. But still, the steam is lacking with David Warner and Johnny Bairstow. They don’t mean to go on top in the power play overs. They are found to restrict their stroke making to build on some bug innings. Furthermore, the middle order is lacking the intention to make a massive score on board. They have got an experienced player Kane Williamson down in the middle, and his not so good form is worrying for SRH.
Meanwhile, KXIP has the better top-order batting in this season. But still, the batters who come down in the middle aren’t doing an effective job. They need to pull the innings with even more power. Glenn Maxwell is not finding the middle of the bat. At the same time, Sarfaraz Khan is groping for the right touch. KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, and Nicholas Pooran are behaving as the core for the team. Maybe bringing in Chris Gayle at the top might solve the middle order issue.
In the bowling department, SRH is hugely better than that of KXIP. SRH got Rashid Khan and TNatarajan, who find the red spots of every batter who plays them. Batting is never comfortable against these two bowlers who are making every ball count. Incase of KXIP, even the mighty Mohammed Shami, has become expensive at times. Their spinners have become innocuous, and that helps the opposing batters to go strong. So all these factors favor SRH.
Prediction on the most six-hitting batter:
KL Rahul, with his new ball batting, is setting a new trend with a wide variety of shots. His shot-making offers him more number of runs. Especially when KL settles, the shots that would come out are unimaginable. Rashid Khan can be a factor for Rahul to lose his josh, but the smart cricketer won’t go against the Afghan wristy.
The one drop batter of KXIP is even more aggressive. Especially with his lofted shots over the mid-wicket region. Nicholas Pooran can convert any good ball into a bad ball by his light footwork. He can make a good length delivery into a just quick delivery with his quickfire backfoot move. This comes so naturally to him. And these elements make him the right candidate to make most of the sixes in this match.
Prediction on Man of the match
Nicholas Pooran makes the best sound in knocking down this man of the match. His current form in this tournament plays a leading role.
Other than that, David Warner looks to have a fine touch. The batting has wholly changed. He has added more responsibility to it. His lightning speed in the running between the wicket and his quick-handed pull shots to send the balls above the roofs of the mighty Australian grounds acts as the testament for his brawniness. David Warner is always a fascinating player when he finds the ball in the middle of the ball. Above all, his running between the wicket pays him off most of the time. He has got a wide range of shots. And that makes him the lethal batsman to bowl for. On facing the spinners who spin it towards him, would make his job even more comfortable to go over the fence. So this match against Punjab would set him a better path to get back on to his form.
To sum up
Overall, SRH looks more experienced, and the responsibility shown by KXIP except for the top three batters is less compared to the Hyderabad players. This makes SRH a better side to win this game.
