Kings XI Punjab are finally in Mohali, and the finalists from last season will hope it is the harbinger of plenty of victories in IPL 2015 starting with the match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday.
KXIP, who are bottom of the points table with just two wins in six matches, were played out of the park by the Chennai Super Kings in their last game, with MS Dhoni's team posting a total close to 200, before restricting George Bailey's side to less than 100.
Such a heavy loss will be hard to take for the team that was top of the pile in the league phase last season, and KXIP will hope that mojo of theirs returns against SRH.
The Sunrisers, also with two wins in six, are coming off a hard-to-digest defeat at the hands of the Mumbai Indians, where they completely lost their way in a smallish chase, and it is becoming increasingly clear that if one of David Warner or Shikhar Dhawan doesn't make a big score, the Hyderabad franchise will inevitably lose.
From No.3 and down, the batsmen just haven't stepped up for SRH, with that loss to MI, where they crumbled quicker than a cookie after the loss of Warner and Dhawan, being a case in point.
"It is the batting and especially the middle order which is a worry for us," admitted KL Rahul to IPL's official website. "The middle order has to wake up and get runs for the team. If the middle order keeps batting like this then there is going to be too much pressure on Warner and Dhawan at the top of the order
"There is firepower in the middle order with Ravi Bopara and Naman Ojha who can hit the ball, but we just have not been able to click well as a batting unit. It is something that we need to work on. We still have games left in the competition and it will be good if we can learn our lessons, pull up our socks and put in better performances for the team. That is what we need from the middle order."
Rahul himself has taken plenty of the blame, with the Karnataka batsman just unable to come up with good-enough scores despite being sent in at the important position of No.3 more often than not.
"My role in the side is very simple," added the talented batsman. "I have to bat through the twenty overs and make sure the batting revolves around me in the middle order. Tom Moody and (VVS) Laxman sir have shown immense faith in me and my abilities in the past few years.
"They believe a lot in me but it is disappointing from an individual point of view when you fail to deliver at that time. We need to pull our socks up and come in with a better attitude in the coming games. We have to work hard on our batting."
Batting is also a worry for KXIP, with their much-vaunted lineup flattering to deceive on quite a few occasions this season. Facing a big chase against CSK, the Kings XI Punjab batsmen barely put up a fight, eventually finishing on an as-poor-as-they-come 95/9 in their 20 overs.
Virender Sehwag and Murali Vijay need to step up at the top of the order, so that the pressure eases a little bit on David Miller and George Bailey, who will have to ponder on the possibility of bringing Glenn Maxwell back into the team after the all-rounder was left out in the last game.
Where to Watch Live
Get the Report, Score and Match Highlights HERE
The match between KXIP and SRH is scheduled for an 8 pm IST (3.30 pm BST, 10.30 am ET) start with live TV coverage in India on Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony Aath, Sony Kix. The IPL 2015 match can also be watched via live streaming online on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Sky Sports will show Kings XI Punjab vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Live in the UK, while the live stream option is on Watch Sky Sports or Sky Go. Catch the IPL game live in the US on ESPN, while the action can also be live streamed on ESPN Cricket.
Audience across the world can also watch the IPL 2015 match live on Cricketgateway.com.
