The Chennai Super Kings face the Royal Challengers Bangalore in match 25 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Here's the analysis:
The SWOT for CSK
Strengths: CSK seem to have their bowling sorted. Though some Imran Tahir would shake things up and probably make the team even better. Replacing Piyush Chawla with Karn Sharma in the last match also seemed to work out. Karn bowled an economical spell of 2/25. Sam Curran, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur and Dwayne Bravo have all got wickets.
Weaknesses: CSK used to be a great chasing side. Their biggest strength has now become their biggest weakness. CSK batted second in all six matches they've played so far and managed a successful chase in only two of them. There is a mostly static batting order, the opening partnership is a major issue and there are only a couple of power hitters. The skipper also seems to have lost his Midas touch.
Opportunities: Over the years, CSK have enjoyed a lot of success against RCB. They have the chance to further the dominance but this is not the CSK of 2018.
Threats: If CSK lose the match, they will be competing with the Kings XI Punjab for the title of 'Worst IPL Team of 2020'. And they are likely to miss the play-off round for the first time. MS Dhoni would not want that on his resume.
The SWOT for RCB
Strengths: RCB’s batting has been their enduring strength. Aaron Finch, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers have all got fifties. Moeen Ali can also be a destructive batsman on his day.
Weaknesses: The bowling remains RCB’s biggest concern. In their last two matches, the bowlers started well but could not finish the job. RCB reduced Rajasthan to 70/4 but the Royals still managed to reach 154. Delhi were struggling at 90/3 but they managed to finish with 196/4.
Opportunities: With Finch not at the top of his game, they can replace Finch with Chris Morris and open the batting with Padikkal and Ali. The South African all-rounder will strengthen the batting depth and give Virat Kohli a death-bowling option that he desperately needs.
Threats: RCB need to deal with the enormous fan and management pressure to deliver. On paper, they have what it takes but they keep making the same mistakes every year.
Head to head:
Matches played: 25
Chennai Super Kings: 16
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 8
No result: 1
Last five matches (most recent first):
Chennai Super Kings: L-W-L-L-L
Royal Challengers Bangalore: L-W-W-L-W
Deccan Herald’s Dream XI
Devdutt Padikkal, Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Washington Sundar, Sam Curran, Dwayne Bravo, Yuzvendra Chahal, Isuru Udana, Shardul Thakur
Ground conditions
The temperature will be around 31° degrees celsius. The humidity should be about 53%. The sky will be clear with a gentle breeze.
Impact player for CSK:
Faf du Plessis: CSK’s limited success this season is down to how well Faf du Plessis has batted. He has made 299 runs with an average of 74.75 and a strike rate of 151.01. He needs to keep it going for CSK to make a comeback.
Impact player for RCB
AB de Villiers: He is the team’s second-highest run-scorer with 155 runs at an average of 51.66 and a strike rate of 176.13. De Villiers is not the batsman of old but he needs to find something extra in his arsenal to boost the team prospects.
How to watch
The match will be broadcast live on the Star Sports network. Viewers can also catch the action online on Disney+Hotstar. The match begins at 7.30 PM IST.
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