The Rajasthan Royals (RR) and the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) face off in the 52nd match of IPL 2023 on Sunday, May 7, at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
Both teams come into this match on the back of defeats, albeit of varying natures. RR collapsed completely, buckling under the pressure of the Gujarat Titans (GT) bowling after opting to bat first at the same venue. Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad spun a web around the RR batters, with their top three falling cheaply in this game.
Meanwhile, SRH continued to find ways to lose matches, with some poor shot selection and lack of intent at the right time. They choked to a five-run defeat against the Kolkata Knight Riders, courtesy of a stellar death-overs spell from Varun Chakravarthy.
RR obliterated SRH in the reverse fixture by 72 runs, but it's unlikely to be that easy now. Let's look at the top three Dream11 differentials for this contest.
#3 Sandeep Sharma (RR)
RR's bowling hasn't been up to the mark in their last two games, although the reason for the defeat against GT was a batting collapse. Against Hyderabad, they'll want to get their bowling back to their usual standards, and they should rely on Sandeep Sharma to help them do that.
Another IPL veteran, who has proven his mettle this season, Sandeep has impressed and helped reduce the impact Prasidh Krishna's absence has for RR. With eight wickets in as many games, he has done a decent job so far but has been unlucky not to pick up more wickets.
The Sawai Mansingh Stadium isn't an easy one to score runs on and it won't be easy for the batters to get Sandeep away. SRH loses plenty of wickets whenever they bat and a bowler like Sandeep who bowls both at the powerplay and in the death can pick up wickets.
#2 Rahul Tripathi (SRH)
It may probably have to do with the fact that Rahul Tripathi is being used as an impact player by the SunRisers, but his ownership on Dream11 is too low for his ability. Despite not firing this season, he remains SRH's highest run-scorer and needs to step up and deliver the performances his team requires of him.
The RR bowlers were rattled when they were taken the attack by GT, and Tripathi is another player capable of doing that. He's a great boundary-scorer against spin, and that'll be important against as accomplished a spin bowling attack as RR.
Any quality No.3 batter is an excellent Dream11 differential and Rahul Tripathi is one such player.
#1 Glenn Phillips (SRH)
It's high time SRH brings Glenn Phillips into the team in place of Harry Brook, who has just not been able to crack the code of playing in India. Barring that one century, he has not been able to score runs, and the team has messed around with their combination to accommodate him in the side.
However, with time running out for SRH, they are very likely to get Glenn Phillips, an excellent player of spin and a very well-rounded player into the team. Phillips kept wickets in Hyderabad's first game against RR but hasn't played since. While he couldn't make an impact in that match, he will look to do that in this one.
He's a very capable striker of the ball, a handy bowling option, and an excellent fielder who guarantees you some fielding points. If Glenn Phillips is playing, he'd be the perfect Dream11 differential.
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