IPL 2022, SRH vs PBKS: Bhuvneshwar Kumar elects to bat
Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings lock horns in the final league stage match (70th) of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Both SRH and PBKS have been evicted from the tournament. Yet, the two sides would be aiming to finish on a high. The news from the center is that SRH's stand-in skipper Bhuvneshwar Kumar has won the toss and elected to bat.
Here are the two teams
Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Jonny Bairstow, Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Mayank Agarwal (captain), Shahrukh Khan, Jitesh Sharma (wicket-keeper), Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Prerak Mankad, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh. Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Priyam Garg, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran (wicket-keeper), Romario Shepherd, Washington Sundar, Jagadeesha Suchith, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (captain), Fazalhaq Farooqi, Umran Malik.
A look at the team changes
PBKS have made three changes. Nathan Ellis, Shahrukh Khan, and Prerak Mankad replace Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rahul Chahar, and Rishi Dhawan, respectively. On the other hand (SRH), Kane Williamson and T Natarajan make way for Romario Shephard and Jagadeesha Suchith. Notably, Williamson had returned home to attend the birth of his second child. As a result, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is leading SRH tonight.
Pitch report, timing, and TV listing
The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai will host this duel. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (7:30 PM IST) and live-streamed on the Hotstar app. The wicket hasn't churned many high scores in the last five matches. In fact, it has averaged around 156 in this interval. Both pacers and spinners have posed a threat at Wankhede.
A look at the head-to-head record
Both teams have faced each other 19 times in IPL. SRH have the upper hand, having won on 13 occasions. Meanwhile, PBKS have won on six occasions. In the earlier match-up this season, SRH (152/3) had beaten Punjab by seven wickets.
Here are the key performers
Liam Livingstone (PBKS) has slammed 388 runs this season at 32.33. He has also picked six wickets. Jonny Bairstow (PBKS) has racked up 230 runs in IPL 2022. He has struck at 143.75. In 13 matches this season, Aiden Markram (SRH) has aggregated 360 runs at 51.42. Rahul Tripathi (SRH) has hoarded 393 runs in 13 matches at 39.30. He has notched three fifties.
