CLT20: Match 10, Group B - Chennai Super Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad - 5 players to watch out for

The Southern Derby hits Ranchi today as the Sunrisers Hyderabad lock horns with former CLT20 champions Chennai Super Kings.

On paper, both have well-balanced squads on offer, but the Chennai outfit scores over its opponents in terms of experience.

Firepower both in batting and bowling is present in huge quantities for both teams, and they also have a good mix of all-rounders and spinners. It will be interesting to see which one blinks first!

Here is a list of five players to watch out for in today’s mouth-watering contest:

Shikhar Dhawan (Sunrisers Hyderabad – captain and opening batsman)

FILE PHOTO: Shikhar Dhawan

The Delhi lad is enjoying the best form of his life, having been in phenomenal touch for India and his franchise. He can single-handedly change the course of the game and also provides flying starts at the top of the order along with Parthiv Patel.

In fact, the latter was a former CSK player, and Dhawan will no doubt pick his brains on the kind of players to target when batting.

Captaincy hasn’t quite come naturally to the 28-year old; his decision to hold back leg-spinners Amit Mishra and Karan Sharma in the first qualifier against the Kandurata Maroons was baffling, to say the least. Nevertheless, he is a quick learner, having realized and rectified his mistakes quickly by the next match.

Hyderabad will look to their skipper to anchor the innings in case they have to chase or provide the kind of rapid starts they need against this formidable opposition, if they are to make first use of the wicket. It also remains to be seen if Dhawan can outmaneuver the Great Gambler, MSD himself!

Karan Sharma (Sunrisers Hyderabad – leg-spinner)

Karn Sharma

Along with Amit Mishra, Sharma forms a potent combination that has managed to surprise even the most well-settled side. The Meerut lad received plaudits for a very mature performance during the 2013 IPL; his leg-breaks were difficult to score off, and he was easily able to stem the flow of runs from opposition batsmen.

Karan is a sharp fielder as well, blessed with quick reflexes and a fine throwing arm. He has also contributed with the bat, as evidenced by his calm hitting during the nail-biter against Trinidad & Tobago the other night.

With his penchant for stifling free-flowing batsmen and ability to play the big shots, CSK will do well to keep an eye on this youngster.

Thisara Perera (Sunrisers Hyderabad – all-rounder)

Thisara Perera

The Sri Lankan cricketer has been a thorn in India’s side ever since he made his ODI debut. In the final of the 2011 World Cup, his pyrotechnics helped his side to a sizeable total, and he also struck crucial blows at times during the entire tournament, thus underlining his importance to the side.

Thisara is somewhat like Lance Klusener; he bats left-handed and has the ability to clear the fence with surgical precision. In addition, his medium-pacers are also quite effective; he possesses a lethal slower delivery that has foxed many international batsmen at times. However, he can also be profligate on an off-day, and is vulnerable to quality spin.

His heroics in the humdinger against T&T steered his side to a narrow win, and SRH will hope for a repeat of that performance today.