IPL 2025: Delhi Capitals to face tough challenge against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Visakhapatnam

LSG's performance was the kind that should reignite confidence among other teams, proving that SRH is not invincible and that no team in the IPL is either unbeatable or too weak to be taken lightly.

Visakhapatnam: Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel might have been pleased when Lucknow Super Giants stunned the formidable Sunrisers Hyderabad in Hyderabad the other night.

For, it was the kind of LSG performance which should rekindle big hopes of the other teams and also believe in themselves that SRH is not certainly invincible, or for that matter no team is unbeatable or
too weak to be ignored in the IPL.

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No doubt, it will be a different kind of a challenge for Delhi when it takes on SRH at the ACA-VDCA International Cricket Stadium here in a Sunday afternoon game.

For a team which owed its thrilling come-from-behind win in the first game against LSG to the brilliance of Ashutosh Sharma and Vipraj Nigam the team’s first, it would not be an understatement that the
‘home’ team should look to wrap up another win before the team leaves the ‘City of Destiny’.

The Delhi line-up has explosive hitters like openers Jake Fraser-McGurk, Faf du Plessis, Tristan Stubbs with the Indian complement coming in the form of Abhishek Porel, Axar patel, Sameer Rizvi besides of course Ashutosh and Vipraj. Importantly, KL Rahul is set to join the team after missing the opener which should be a huge plus.

In what looks like a comparatively smaller ground, the challenges for the bowlers will be all the more daunting.

With star performer Mitchell Starc, Mukesh Kumar, Mohit Sharma handling the pace and left-arm spin duo of Axar and Kuldeep Yadav expected to raise the bar in the crucial middle-overs, it should be exciting for the fans to see how they tackle the imposing SRH line-up.

On the other hand, SRH should be more than eager to recover the lost ground in its third game of the season – having won the opener against Rajasthan Royals and losing the next one to LSG at home.

Heinrich Klaasen may have emphasised after the loss to LSG that SRH can be destructive till No. 8 in batting, but it is unmistakable that early dismissals of the top three Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and
Ishan Kishan certainly puts a lot of pressure on the others who follow including himself. So, how good they are in responding if they find themselves in such a situation will be the key.

In bowling captain and pace ace Pat Cummins can be an exception given, his experience and class. But, he badly needs support from the other pacers like Mohammed Shami, Simarjeet Singh and Harshal Patel in terms of getting the crucial breakthroughs.

Leg-spinner Adam Zampa and left-arm spinner Abhishek Sharma will be in focus because of the likely batter-friendly conditions.

Who will leave the City in a better frame of mind?