Can RCB turn things around? | IPL 2020 Eliminator - Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore: SWOT Analysis

It's the second match of the play-offs. The Sunrisers Hyderabad take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Eliminator at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Here's the analysis.

The SWOT for SRH

Strengths: Four bowlers have snagged 10 or more wickets and the SRH attack has improved through the course of the tournament. Rashid Khan is a constant threat and T Natarajan has bowled the most number of yorkers this season. Sandeep Sharma has regularly picked up early wickets and Jason Holder has been an excellent addition to the line-up.

Weaknesses: David Warner has again had to do the bulk of the scoring. The middle-order problems haven't been fixed but Wriddhiman Saha has provided much-needed stability at the top of the order. Kane Williamson has been assigned the responsibility of carrying the weight in the middle order but if he is removed, the team will be in trouble.

Opportunities: RCB have been weak in the last four matches, so Hyderabad have a chance to get a victory and face Delhi in Qualifier 2.

Threats: The match is a virtual quarter-final. There are no second chances.

The SWOT for RCB

Strengths: Virat Kohli has three fifties, Devdutt Padikkal has five fifties and AB de Villiers has four fifties. The batting is formidable but some cracks are showing. Josh Philippe has been tried as an opener in recent matches but he hasn't made a strong enough impact. Should Aaron Finch be tried again? Or do they have the courage to try a new opening option like Moeen Ali? He has the fourth-best strike rate in the IPL across all seasons.

Weaknesses: The biggest issue is in the bowling. Only two bowlers – Yuzvendra Chahal and Chris Morris – have got 10 wickets or more. Washington Sundar bowls tight powerplay overs but hasn't been able to get enough wickets. Navdeep Saini hasn't recovered fully from injury and Mohammed Siraj gives away too many runs. RCB need their bowlers to deliver to get past SRH.

Opportunities: If RCB had to select a team from the top three to face in the play-offs, they would have probably chosen SRH. This is their best chance to reach Qualifier 2.

Threats: Their recent form has been very poor. Can they turn things around quickly?

Head to head:

Matches played: 17

Sunrisers Hyderabad: 7

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 9

No result: 1

Last five matches (most recent first):

Sunrisers Hyderabad: W-W-W-L-W

Royal Challengers Bangalore: L-L-L-L-W

What happened in their league phase clashes?

Honours were even between the two teams in the league fixtures.

Deccan Herald’s Dream XI

Devdutt Padikkal, David Warner, Wriddhiman Saha, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Morris, Rashid Khan, Navdeep Saini, Yuzvendra Chahal, T Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma

Team news

No injuries reported from either camp.

Ground conditions

The temperature should be around 26 degrees Celsius. It will be partly cloudy but the chances of rain are minimal. The humidity will be about 69% with evening winds.

Impact player for SRH

Rashid Khan: He is SRH’s leading wicket-taker with 19 scalps at an economy of just 5.28. The batsmen try to be cautious against Rashid but he finds ways to arrest runs and get wickets. His four overs will be crucial in this match.

Impact player for RCB

Virat Kohli: With 460 runs, he is RCB's second-highest run-scorer after Devdutt Padikkal. Kohli needs to bring the much-needed aggression in the middle phase of the batting innings. As the best batsman in the team and the captain, he needs to find his best touch and inspire his team to take them into the final.

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.