Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Ishan Kishan is seen during a practice session.
The swashbuckling Sunrisers Hyderabad, last year’s runner-up, begins its quest to go one step further when it hosts Rajasthan Royals in its Indian Premier League 2025 season opener at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Sunday.
Last year, SRH banked on its batting to shock and awe its opponents. That strategy is set to continue following the addition of the explosive Ishan Kishan to a formidable lineup of Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Heinrich Klaasen.
A revamped bowling unit, though, will be the one to watch. Mohammed Shami and Harshal Patel will link up with Pat Cummins in the pace department, while the services of Rahul Chahar and Adam Zampa have been sought for spin. With Jos Buttler gone, Royals will bank on Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, and Riyan Parag’s pace penchant to match SRH’s pyrotechnics.
RR has a relatively inexperienced bowling attack with Jofra Archer shouldering the bulk of the responsibility. The Sri Lankan spin pair of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana also have a key role in controlling the middle overs.
There haven’t been many teams that have decided to go with an all-Indian top five and with not many reliable backup options, Royals have either stumbled on a winning formula or see value in their domestic bench strength, which includes 13-year-old batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi, the youngest player to earn an IPL contract.
With an 11-9 head-to-head record and a pitch looking primed for a run-fest, the odds favour the home side going into this clash.
The Teams (From):
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (c), Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Abhishek Sharma, Sachin Baby, Mohammed Shami, Adam Zampa, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Rahul Chahar, Eshan Malinga, Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Wiaan Mulder, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Atharva Taide, Brydon Carse, Simarjeet Singh, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari.
Rajasthan Royals: Riyan Parag (c), Sanju Samson, Shubham Dubey, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Rana, Kunal Singh Rathore, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Ashok Sharma, Tushar Deshpande, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwal, Kwena Maphaka, Sandeep Sharma, Maheesh Theekshana, Yudhvir Singh.
Match Starts at 3:30pm IST.
(with inputs from PTI)
Published – March 22, 2025 02:47 pm IST
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