IPL 2024, Qualifier 2: Rajasthan Royals Win Toss, Opt To Bowl First Against Sunrisers Hyderabad; Check Playing XIs

Chennai: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) lock horns with Rajasthan Royals (RR) in a do-or-die Qualifier 2 of IPL 2024 at the M Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai tonight. Both teams suffered batting collapses in their previous Chennai outings, but contrasting bowling attacks set the stage for an intriguing contest.

SRH boast a formidable batting trio in Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head (affectionately called “Travishek” by fans), and Heinrich Klaasen. However, the spin-friendly Chepauk pitch could expose their lack of quality spin options. RR counter this with a potent bowling attack featuring world-class spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravichandran Ashwin, who could exploit the pitch conditions.

The Chennai pitch is known for aiding spinners and restricting run flow. Expect both teams to prioritize bowling first and capitalize on the pitch’s assistance. Recent trends also favour this strategy, with chasing teams winning just five out of seven matches here this season.

SRH will rely on their pace attack led by T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Pat Cummins to stifle RR’s batting. RR, meanwhile, will look to their explosive middle-order consisting of Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, and Riyan Parag to counter SRH’s bowling might.

Pleasant weather is expected with some cloud cover but no rain forecast. High temperatures (32°C) will test player endurance, while moderate winds (19 km/hr) may offer some respite. Humidity levels at 76% could impact both batters and bowlers.

The winner of this game will secure a coveted spot in the IPL 2024 final against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Playing XIs

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Reddy, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen(w), Abdul Samad, Pat Cummins(c), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, T Natarajan

SRH Impact Subs: Umran Malik, Sanvir Singh, Glenn Phillips, Mayank Markande, Shahbaz Ahmed

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Sanju Samson(w/c), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Rovman Powell, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal

RR Impact Subs: Shimron Hetmyer, Nandre Burger, Shubham Dubey, Donovan Ferreira, Kuldeep Sen