IPL 2018 SRH vs KXIP: 5 player battles to look forward to between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab

#4 Shikhar Dhawan v Ankit Rajpoot

Shikhar Dhawan is SRH's premier batsman

The tall fast bowler came into the side two games ago and in his previous game against the Delhi Daredevils, Ankit Rajpoot delivered a superb performance to help KXIP defend a low score. He was the Man of the Match as well and tonight his performance is going to be crucial yet again when he comes up against SRH’s premier batsman Shikhar Dhawan. The fast bowler has recorded an economy rate of 7.85 so far and his pace and bounce is going to be a challenge for the opening batsman.

Dhawan started off the tournament in a canter but since then he has not got big scores and perhaps tonight’s game might just be the right time for him to get back to his best. The injury obviously hasn’t done him any favours. Yet, he is averaging 45 and striking at 136.36 so far. The opening battle with Rajpoot is going to be crucial and will almost certainly have a say on the SRH batting effort.