IPL 2017: SRH vs KXIP, 5 factors of winning

#3 Strategy

Eoin Morgan was back in the side for Kings XI Punjab in the last game

The Kings XI have been flexible with their batting line-up so far in the tournament. Except the opening pair, no one has had a settled batting position. This might continue to be the case here too, but if they bat first, they must bat Maxwell higher at No. 3 so that he can face the maximum number of overs.

He must be followed by Morgan at 4 and Miller at 5 so that the Kings have the best chance of posting a big score. If they are chasing, they may move batsmen around as per the need of the hour.

With the ball, the Kings must use their spinners smartly. Opening with Kariappa alongside Sandeep against the two left-handed openers of the SRH might be a good move to upset their rhythm.

For SRH, they must push Yuvraj Singh to No. 3 if they get a decent opening start. He can sustain the momentum and can go big against the spinners to put pressure on the Punjab bowlers. If they lose one early, promoting Naman Ojha to No. 3 to settle the innings might be a good idea considering it’s still early days in the tournament and they would need him to be in good touch going forward.

They must try opening the bowling with Bipul Sharma as Kings XI have two right-handers at the top of the order. He would be able to lend good support to Bhuvneshwar at the start and a few early wickets can hurt the SRH badly as they don’t bat deep.