After starting their respective campaigns with hard-fought wins, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s formidable Chennai Super Kings and Shikhar Dhawan’s spirited Sunrisers Hyderabad will be keen to make it two-in-a-row when they square off on Thursday.
CSK, who rode a 44-ball stand of 89 between Suresh Raina and Michael Hussey to thrash Titans, will look to consolidate on their position at the helm of the table. Full points will take them closer to the semifinals. A defeat, though, will push them to second behind Sunrisers, who posted a thrilling four-wicket victory over Trinidad and Tobago, thanks to Thisara Perera’s impressive all-round show.
Considering that they have more match-winners and that they have become familiar to the conditions here, CSK would be the favourites. But the lacklustre performance of their bowlers, especially of spin duo Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, would be something Sunrisers would hope to cash in on. Sunrisers, too, are beset with a similar woe. Their trusted bowling duo, Amit Mishra and Dale Steyn, has been ineffective and expensive.