Can injury-hit Sunrisers get back on track against underperforming KKR

Match number 61 will see the clash of Kolkata Knight Riders against Sunrisers Hyderabad at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium. Both the teams are at 10 points and need a win to keep their hopes for playoffs alive. 

Sunrisers Hyderabad has had a roller coaster journey this season. From a terrible start to making a comeback to occupy a place in the top 4 for a certain period. And just when they looked to have a stronghold in came, the injury-affected team started falling apart. They have lost four consecutive games and must be struggling with confidence. Their biggest strength, their bowling unit, looks fragile and struggling. They have conceded 180-plus runs in each of their last games and couldn't restrict opposition batters. They have shuffled their playing XI quite a few times but haven't found a stable solution. They need to win from here, or it will knock them out of the tournament. 

On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders will be taking on Sunrisers Hyderabad after a morale-boosting win over Mumbai Indians. They, too, had to undergo multiple changes in playing XI until it came off quite well in their previous fixture. Venkatesh Iyer finding his form back during the last match is a big positive for the player and the team. They might come up with the same playing XI in today's clash. 

Players to watch out for

Batters: Venkatesh Iyer and Rahul Tripathi

Venkatesh Iyer found his form back at top order in his previous match. The left-hander smashed an impressive 43 off 24 to help the team get a good start. Continuing his form, he will be a crucial player for KKR. On the flip side, Rahul Tripathi, in the previous match with KKR, smashed 71 and will be aiming for such a clinical contribution this time.

Bowlers: Sunil Narine and Bhuvneshwar Kumar

The mystery spinner Sunil Narine lacks the number of wickets in his column; he can restrict the batter well. His tight bowling will be crucial to help other bowlers take wickets. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, like Sunil Narine, though doesn't have many wickets but carries the necessary experience to keep batters on the back foot. 

Stats to keep an eye on

• Bhuvneshwar Kumar has dominated Ajinkya Rahane in the IPL, having dismissed him six times in 15 innings while keeping him to 89 runs off 96 balls.
• Andre Russell has smashed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for 51 off 21 balls at a strike rate of nearly 243 while being dismissed just once in the IPL.
• It will be Shreyas Iyer's 100th IPL game.

In their previous match encounter of this season, Sunrisers Hyderabad had a comfortable win against Kolkata Knight Riders. It will be good to see if they can double over Kolkata tonight.