Last Updated on 3 months by Charbel Coorey

IPL 2020 Match 52: RCB vs SRH Preview Dream11 Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | RCB vs SRH Dream11 Prediction Today | Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Key Players | Sharjah Pitch Report

Just like the heat is on Delhi Capitals as the UAE weather cools down, the same applies to Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Yet another game in an incredible IPL 2020 is a high-stakes one, with the winner here taking a giant leap towards the playoffs. In fact, RCB will secure their top-four spot with a win here, while SRH will overtake KXIP, KKR and RR to sit in fourth should they win this one, thanks to their superior net run rate.

So, can Wriddhiman Saha, who justified his team’s decision to leave on Jonny Bairstow, perform brilliantly once again to keep SRH alive? Or will it be RCB who bounce back from their own consecutive defeats? The pressure will be on at Sharjah, but it will be the team that plays with the greater freedom and calm that will prevail in this one.

Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

• David Warner’s swashbuckling 66 off 34 balls last game vs DC indicated that it is now time to throw caution to the wind, especially given he has the insurance of Kane Williamson in the middle order.
• Warner loves playing against RCB. He has smashed 568 runs against them in 10 innings at an average of 71.00 and SR 169.05. However, RCB’s bowling is much improved in 2020, so it promises to be an excellent battle.
• Virat Kohli has the second-most runs in RCB-SRH matches (518), which come at an excellent average of 43.17, even though he has crossed 40 just once in his last seven knocks vs SRH. The RCB captain has had a strong tournament (424 runs, avg. 53.00), especially when you consider he scored just 14 runs in his first three innings.
• But, arguably RCB’s most important player is AB de Villiers. When the South African superstar performs well in IPL 2020, RCB often win. When he doesn’t, they often lose. This is reflected in the numbers. In RCB wins, ABD has scored 246 runs at an average of 123 and SR of 203.31. In RCB losses, this comes down to 93 runs at an average of 18.60.
• de Villiers has a strong record for RCB vs SRH: 13 inns, 440 runs, avg. 36.67, SR 167.30.
• Manish Pandey has shown good form in recent matches (83*, 15 and 44* in his last three knocks). But, can he improve on a sub-par record vs RCB? (13 inns, 247 runs, avg. 22.45, SR 117.06)
• Josh Philippe replaced Aaron Finch last game for RCB, and he looked good vs the mighty MI (33 off 24 balls). His opening partner, Devdutt Padikkal, who hit 56 (42) on IPL debut vs SRH earlier this season, is coming off 74 off 45 balls vs MI.
• Chris Morris has had his two most expensive matches in his last two outings. However, he has still taken at least one wicket in five of his seven matches this season. Plus he could be key with his batting, as well as fielding in high-traffic areas down the ground.
• Yuzvendra Chahal (18 wickets in IPL 2020) has the second-most wickets in RCB-SRH matches (13 in 12 matches). He was man of the match against SRH earlier this season.
• Chahal’s battle with Rashid Khan is worth the watch. The Afghan star has been outstanding this season (17 wickets in 12 matches), and is coming off a remarkable 3/7 vs DC.
• Sandeep Sharma has taken four wickets in his past two games, and has five wickets in four games vs RCB. His seam partner, T Natarajan has 13 wickets in 12 games in IPL 2020, and returned to the wickets circle with 2/26 last game vs DC.
• Can Mohammad Siraj (3/8, 0/29 and 2/28 in his last three games) make inroads into the SRH top order?
• Jason Holder has taken six wickets in three games in IPL 2020.

Stats and Facts

• Head-to-head: Matches 16, RCB 7, SRH 8, 1 abandoned.
• RCB (163/5) beat SRH (153) earlier this season. SRH were travelling nicely at 121/2, before a bad collapse resulted in defeat. So, SRH will need to be wary of that issue here today.
• Rashid Khan vs AB de Villiers will be key a battle. Rashid has dismissed ABD twice in 16 balls in IPL cricket, conceding just 17 runs in the process.
• David Warner’s strike rate is 167.03 in his last four games, compared to 121.88 in his first eight games. Danger man. So, RCB could look to employ the economical Washington Sundar to try keep Warner quiet.
• If SRH lose this game, they are out of the tournament.

Possible Playing 11

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1. Josh Philippe, 2. Devdutt Padikkal, 3. Virat Kohli (c), 4. AB de Villiers (wk), 5. Gurkeerat Singh Mann, 6. Shivam Dube/Moeen Ali, 7. Chris Morris, 8. Washington Sundar, 9. Isuru Udana/Navdeep Saini, 10. Mohammed Siraj, 11. Yuzvendra Chahal

Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1. David Warner (c), 2. Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 3. Manish Pandey, 4. Kane Williamson, 5. Vijay Shankar, 6. Abdul Samad, 7. Jason Holder, 8. Rashid Khan, 9. Shahbaz Nadeem, 10. T Natarajan, 11. Sandeep Sharma

Sharjah Pitch and Weather Report

Scores have become lower at Sharjah as the season has progressed, and the chasing team has benefitted. The chasing team has won the past five matches on this ground, with dew playing a key role. Dew is expected once again, so chasing could prove key again.

Dream11 Prediction

Option 1:

Option 2:

Match Prediction

Even though SRH have had most of their success when setting a score, this one could come down to chasing well. The team that bats first needs 170-180 to feel safe with dew around. RCB start as favourites, but this one has the makings of a tight match.

Thanks for reading!