IPL 2022, SRH v CSK: 3 player battles to watch out for

The 46th match of IPL 2022 will see fourth-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) lock horns with ninth-placed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Sunday (1 May). The game marks the return of MS Dhoni at the helm of the Super Kings, with Ravindra Jadeja stepping down from the captaincy in a bid to focus on his game.

The two teams locked horns in Navi Mumbai earlier this season, with the Sunrisers winning by eight wickets. While that marked the first win of the season for Kane Williamson and Co., SRH went on to win four more games on the bounce before losing off the last ball against Gujarat Titans (GT).

The overall head-to-head across 17 IPL clashes between these two sides stands at 12-5 in favor of CSK.

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Three player battles to watch out for between SRH and CSK

It's a do-or-die clash for the defending champions Chennai Super Kings, who need to win just about every game hereon to stay alive in the tournament. Sunrisers have settled in on a fine combination, though, with the whole functioning greater than the sum of their parts.

On that note, here's a look at three player battles that could shape this contest at the MCA Stadium tonight.

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#1 Bhuvneshwar Kumar vs Ruturaj Gaikwad

One of the pivotal forces behind CSK's title triumph last season, Ruturaj Gaikwad has failed to get going in IPL 2022. A solitary half-century in eight innings sums up what has been a tough campaign for the 25-year-old Maharashtrian.

The challenge is only to get tougher for Gaikwad, with a certain Bhuvneshwar Kumar up against him with the new ball. The SRH spearhead hasn't dismissed Gaikwad yet in the IPL, although he has only sent down 13 deliveries to the right-hander.

Given Bhuvneshwar's prowess in generating movement upfront, he will test both edges of Gaikwad's bat. The MCA Stadium is known to favor swing upfront. With Gaikwad having faced issues in countering the same, how he staves off the Bhuvneshwar threat could well dictate his and the Super Kings' fortunes tonight.

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#2 Kane Williamson vs Maheesh Theekshana

While wins have come the way of his side, SRH skipper Kane Williamson has had a tough time with the bat in IPL 2022. The Kiwi has accumulated 148 runs at a strike rate of 93.08 thus far and will have to contend with the prospect of facing mystery spinner Maheesh Theekshana tonight in Pune.

Theekshana, for the record, has been one of the lone bright spots for the Super Kings this season. With eight wickets in five games at an average of 19.37, Theekshana has looked the most penetrative CSK bowler and has been tasked with bowling a couple of overs in the powerplay.

How Williamson copes with the challenge posed by the Lankan spinner forms an interesting subplot as SRH look to get back to winning ways. The skipper's return to form is one of the very few boxes that SRH are looking to tick off. That said, countering Theekshana's mystery will be a challenge of the highest order that Williamson has to ace, making this an engrossing battle to watch out for.

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#3 Umran Malik vs Ravindra Jadeja

Very few sights in IPL 2022 have been as exhilarating as Umran Malik's thunderbolts shattering the stumps. Fresh from a five-wicket haul against GT, Malik remains SRH's X-factor with the ball, accounting for 15 scalps thus far.

An interesting battle in store tonight is the prospective one between Malik and Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja has had a tough IPL 2022 campaign with both the bat and ball, and having relinquished his captaincy duties, all eyes will be on the talismanic CSK all-rounder as he looks to hit peak form again.

Jadeja's prowess as an end-overs pace hitter has seen an upswing over the last couple of seasons. However, like many others in the CSK batting unit, he has shown susceptibility to high-paced deliveries bowled at hard lengths.

Expect SRH to save up an over from Umran Malik for Jadeja then, keeping this in mind. It will be a litmus test of some kind for CSK and its star all-rounder as they seek to keep their campaign relevant.

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