Find out team news, TV and streaming information, odds, weather forecast, head-to-head-record and much, much more ahead of the 14th game of the new Indian Premier League season
Punjab Kings take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 14th match of the 2021 IPL.
The game is scheduled for 3.30pm IST (11am BST) on Wednesday, April 21, 2021.
Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium is hosting the game.
To be honest, neither of these sides looks in any sort of nick. Punjab Kings have lost two of their three matches so far, and Sunrisers Hyderabad have lost all three. Both will be desperate to give their season a kick-start. Defeat for Sunrisers and chances of reaching the play-offs will be wilting before the competition even reaches its second week.
Dafabet make Punjab Kings the hot favourites for this one - they are 3/4 for the win.
If you fancy a flutter on Sunrisers Hyderabad, they are available at 21/20.
Fancy KL Rahul to continue his hot streak? Rahul has two half-centuries from three innings and is 15/8 to top score for his team in this match.
For Sunrisers, leading runscorer Jonny Bairstow can be bought at 23/20 to return the highest individual score for SRH in this fixture.
Rahul's two fifties have contributed to a competition average of 52.33 with a strike rate of a shade over 145.
The captain, who is currently ranked 10th in the men's T20 Player Index, has come under some scrutiny for the way in which he has put together his innings but his runs still remain vital to success for Punjab. Following him, Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran offer the opportunity for Punjab to go really big.
Punjab Kings have two of the top five scores in the IPL 2021 to their names (ahead of Mumbai Indians v Delhi Capitals on Tuesday): 195 for 4 in a losing cause against Delhi, and the highest team total in the competition so far - 221 for 6 against Rajasthan Royals.
Three of the top five six-hitters in the IPL this year to date are taking part in this match: Deepak Hooda has eight from just 56 balls faced, Bairstow has seven from 75 balls, and Rahul seven from 108 deliveries.
With the ball, Rashid Khan continues to be an utter menace in the middle overs. The Afghanistan spinner's mixture of leggies and googlies remains one of the most difficult periods of any match for any T20 batsman. He is averaging 16 with the ball in the IPL this year, with an economy rate of just 5.33 from 12 overs bowled. Rashid has sent down 31 dot balls in that time (the sixth most among IPL bowlers in 2021 prior to Delhi Capitals v Mumbai Indians on Tuesday).
Wickets have been an issue for both of these sides so far this term. Punjab have managed 15 in three matches, while SRH have 19.
Punjab Kings are arriving in Chennai to play their first match of the season on the Chepauk pitch, which is considerably slower than its cousin in Mumbai.
Ravi Bishnoi could well be recalled, while a spot for Fabian Allen in place of one of PK's Australian seamer Riley Meredith looks plausible.
Kane Williamson could be fit enough to take his place in the Hyderabad middle order following an elbow injury - an arrival which would significantly bolster SRH's chances, given their crumbly form in the latter part of innings.
Sunrisers made four changes for their last outing - a defeat by Mumbai Indians. Virat Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Khaleel Ahmed came in in place of Wriddhiman Saha, Jason Holder, Shahbaz Nadeem and T Natarajan. It seems unlikely all four will retain their places, though despite an underwhelming performance Mujeeb may well remain to try to keep Punjab's pace-loving top order quiet on a slow Chennai deck.
The two teams have played each other 16 times.
Punjab Kings wins: 5
Mumbai Indians win: 12
Another clear day is predicted in Chennai, with temperatures expected to reach 35 degrees Celcius just ahead of the start of play. Rain is incredibly unlikely.
No, this match will be played behind closed doors owing to the Covid-19 situation in India.
Sunrisers' team selection has been curious so far this season, and their performances in Chennai have been pretty miserable. Punjab Kings have enough about their top order to do enough damage with the bat to ensure victory, even with Rashid Khan in the opposite XI.
IPL TEAM GUIDES
Sky Sports have the rights in the United Kingdom.
You can aso stream the tournament using the Disney+ Hotstar digital platform, though the matches are only available for VIP or Premium subscribers.
Star Sports have the television rights in India.
Streaming service YuppTV have acquired digital streaming rights in a host of markets, including Australia, continental Europe, Malaysia, Southeast Asia with the exception of Singapore, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives, Central Asia, and Central and South America.
In the USA, the games will be broadcast on Willow TV and the Willow TV website. Fox Sports have the broadcasting rights in Australia, while Supersport will televise the games in South Africa. In the Caribbean, Flow TV have the rights.
The following broadcasters owning the rights for their respective regions:
Bangladesh: Channel 9
Afghanistan: Lemar TV
Malaysia: Measat
MENA/UAE: BeIN Sport
Hong Kong: Now TV
Singapore: SingTel
New Zealand: Sky Sport
Papua New Guinea: EMTV
Punjab Kings: KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Nicholas Pooran, Mandeep Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Prabhsimran Singh, Mohammed Shami, Chris Jordan, Darshan Nalkande, Ravi Bishnoi, Murugan Ashwin, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Ishan Porel, Dawid Malan, Jhye Richardson, Shahrukh Khan, Riley Meredith, Moises Henriques, Jalaj Saxena, Utkarsh Singh, Fabian Allen, Saurabh Kumar
Mumbai Indians: Kane Williamson, David Warner, Manish Pandey, Virat Singh, Priyam Garg, Abdul Samad, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, T Natarajan, Abhishek Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem, Vijay Shankar, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Jonny Bairstow, Wriddhiman Saha, Shreevats Goswami, Basil Thampi, Jason Holder, Jagadeesha Suchith, Kedar Yadav, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Jason Roy
PBKS: KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Deepak Hooda, Nicholas Pooran, Shahrukh Khan, Jhye Richardson, M Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Riley Meredith, Arshdeep Singh
SRH: Wriddiman Saha, David Warner, Manish Pandey, Jonny Bairstow, Vijay Shankar, Abdul Samad, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Shahbaz Nadeem, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan
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