Magazine : 
SRH vs RCB IPL 2023: Bogey team Sunrisers Hyderabad stands in RCB's way
It will be a houseful at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, but the centre of attraction will be Virat Kohli and local lad Mohammed Siraj, not Sunrisers Hyderabad. The last home game for the Sunrisers has nothing at stake for the hosts who have won only once here but they can mar Royal Challengers Bangalore’s chances. That win over Punjab Kings seems so long ago and it has been a series of disappointing results ever since, as SRH failed to finish games they had in control.
The constant shuffling of the opening duo meant they never had the best of starts, which in turn put pressure on Rahul Tripathi, skipper Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen. Barring Klaasen, Abdul Samad and Glenn Phillips, the rest Abhishek Sharma, Mayank Agarwal and Markram looked woefully out of touch, a century by Harry Brook, their most expensive acquisition at Rs 13.25 crore, notwithstanding.
“The likes of Rahul Tripathi or Abhishek Sharma, who scored runs last year in excess of 400 (each) find themselves struggling a bit this year. But it is not just one or two players, as a unit, we were unable to match up to what was expected,” said coach Brian Lara after their defeat to Gujarat Titans.
Though none of them figure at the top of the Purple Cap charts, the SRH bowling unit fared better than their batters. But RCB would want to seize the opportunity against a deflated SRH and fancy their chances of surging ahead of Mumbai in the table with a win.
The RCB batting is topheavy with skipper Faf du Plessis topping the Orange cap standings (631 runs) with Kohli (438) not far behind. Glenn Maxwell (384) is there too. The middle-order is vulnerable, but they are here after an 112-run win over Rajasthan Royals and would look to extend the winning streak.
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