As the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 is in its business-end stage, it's time for the playoffs, with former champions Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Eliminator, at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, on Friday. The winner would progress to Qualifier 2, where they would face the loser of Qualifier 1, while the loser of the Eliminator is knocked out.
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SRH are featuring in the playoffs for the sixth time, having won the title in 2016. As for RCB, this would also be their sixth playoffs assignment, having finished as runners-up thrice and never winning the title. In the meantime, we present the match preview of this exciting clash.
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Current form: As far as the current form of both sides is concerned, it is contrasting. SRH are coming off an impressive 10-wicket win over defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI). Meanwhile, RCB succumbed to a six-wicket defeat at the hands of Delhi Capitals (DC). SRH finished third this season, while RCB finished fourth.
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Team composition: Considering the team composition of both sides, they are variable. SRH are a balanced side, with equal weightage in all departments, while they have the most all-round options. For RCB, they are a bowling-heavy team, as SRH batsmen will indeed have a tough time facing them.
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Head-to-head: As for their head-on clashes, both the sides have played each other on 17 occasions, with SRH winning nine and RCB winning seven, while a tie was abandoned. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), both have met on a couple of occasions, with both winning a piece. The last match between the two ended in SRH's favour, who won by five wickets.
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Weather and pitch conditions: Considering the weather, the temperature is likely to be around 32 degrees, with a 46% chance of humidity. As for the track, it would be a competitive one, with a par score of about 170. With dew coming in later, the team bowling first would be at an advantage.
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Predicted XISRH: David Warner (c), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Manish Pandey, Kane Williamson, Vijay Shankar, Jason Holder, Abdul Samad, Rashid Khan, Shahbaz Nadeem, Sandeep Sharma, T Natarajan.RCB: Joshua Phillipe, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers (wk), Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Isuru Udana, Mohammed SirajNavdeep Saini, Yuzvendra Chahal.
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Fantasy XIBatsmen: Warner, Padikkal, Kohli (c), Pandey- Warner is perfect for giving the right start, while Padikkal and Kohli can consolidate the top-order, owing to their decent form. Meanwhile, Pandey can provide stability to the middle-order, as he has been doing good. Kohli's assuring form makes him the skipper.Wicketkeeper: Saha, de Villiers- Saha can be the perfect opening partner for Warner, owing to his fine form of late. Also, de Villiers' reliable form is a respite for any of the orders.All-rounders: Holder, Rashid (vc)- Holder has risen to the occasion in the past few matches, as he is likely to rule in all departments, while Rashid is a no-brainer here for his deadly spin bowling, and his violent form makes him the vice-captain.Bowlers: Chahal, Saini, Sandeep- Chahal has been controlling the spin department quite well throughout, while Saini and Sandeep have been impressive with the pace.
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Players to watch outSaha: The lanky wicketkeeper-batsman has been in a terrific form in the past couple of matches, as fans would once again expect him to give a fiery start, to keep SRH in the driver's seat.Saini: The pacer has been decent throughout the tournament for RCB. However, he did suffer an injury scare in the last game. Nonetheless, it would be interesting to see if he continues with the same momentum.
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