The excitement around Indian Premier League (IPL) 2013 has built up again after the first two exciting matches. Now, two lesser known teams - Sunrisers Hyderabad and Pune Warriors India - will take on each other, on Friday at the Rajiv Gandhi Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad.
Overview:
Friday's match is going to be an exciting one as both the teams would try to start their IPL sixth season outing on a winning note and set a good momentum for the future matches. It will be their first meeting in IPL. Deccan Chargers had beaten Pune Warriors India thrice in four meetings in the past.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, which replaced the Deccan Chargers after the latter were terminated by the IPL Governing Council, is going to play their debut match in the IPL under the new owner, Sun TV Network, on Friday. All eyes will be on the new team when they take the fields at home (Hyderabad).
Pune Warriors India had played in the last two editions of the IPL. However, they got a new look this time around, having signed a few good players.
Team News:
Sunrisers Hyderabad: The team has got a new look in coach Tom Moody, and mentors VVS Laxman and Kris Srikkanth besides a new name after Sun TV Network took over the franchise from Deccan Chronicle.
The team retained 20 players from Deccan Chargers while adding 13 more players to the side, giving a new look. Kumar Sangakkara is leading the team.
Sunrisers Hyderabad has a good batting line-up - Sangakkara, Thisara Perera, Cameron White and Parthiv Patel. However, they will miss Shikhar Dhawan, who knocked a superb Test century against Australia last month, as he is nursing a hand injury. JP Duminy has also been ruled out for the entire tournament.
The team has a fast bowler like Dale Steyn, Ishant Sharma and Darren Sammy. Spinners like Amit Mishra and Nathan McCullum also proved to be good bowlers.
Pune Warriors India: Sri Lankan captain and all-rounder Angelo Mathews has taken over captaincy from Sourav Ganguly.
The team has good batting line-up in Yuvraj Singh, Ross Taylor, Angelo Mathews, Abhishek Nayar, Marlon Samuels, Steve Smith and Robin Uthappa. It received a huge setback after Australian captain Michael Clarke was ruled out from the entire tournament due to a back injury. But the return of Yuvraj, who missed the previous IPL after being diagnosed with cancer, will be a boost to the team's spirit.
With former South African great Allan Donald as its coach, Pune Warriors India have fast bowlers like Ashok Dinda, Kane Richardson, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Alphonse Thomas and Wayne Parnell. Spinner Ajantha Mendis is expected to give a good show.
Verdict:
Pune Warriors India have good batsmen, who can score big besides demoralizing bowlers with their batting prowess. But Sunrisers Hyderabad are a more balanced side. With a good bowling line-up and home ground advantage, Sunrisers Hyderabad should win its first IPL match.
SQUADS
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kumar Sangakkara (C), Akshath Reddy, Amit Mishra, Anand Rajan, Ankit Sharma, Ashish Reddy, Biplap Samantray, Cameron White, Chris Lynn, Dale Steyn, Darren Sammy, Dwaraka Ravi Teja, Hanuma Vihari, Ishant Sharma, Karan Sharma, Nathan McCullum, Parthiv Patel, Prasanth Padmanabhan, Quinton de Kock, Sachin Rana, Shikhar Dhawan, Sudeep Tyagi, Thalaivan Sargunam, Thisara Perera, Veer Pratap Singh
Pune Warriors India: Angelo Mathews (c), Aaron Finch, Abhishek Nayar, Ajantha Mendis, Ali Murtaza, Anustup Majumdar, Ashok Dinda, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Dheeraj Jadhav, Eklavya Dwivedi, Harpreet Singh, Ishwar Pandey, Kane Richardson, Krishnakant Upadhyay, Luke Wright, Mahesh Rawat, Manish Pandey, Marlon Samuels, Mitchell Marsh, Mithun Manhas, Parveez Rasool, Rahul Sharma, Raiphi Gomez, Robin Uthappa, Ross Taylor, Shrikant Wagh, Steve Smith, Tirumalasetti Suman, Tamim Iqbal, Udit Birla, Yuvraj Singh, Wayne Parnell
Where to Watch Live
The match will begin at 8:00 pm IST and will be telecast live on Sony Set Max channel.
