CSK vs SRH, IPL 2021: Who will take the most wickets in today's match?
The high-flying Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will face off against a struggling Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Match 23 of IPL 2021 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Wednesday.
The two teams are experiencing contrasting seasons, with CSK having lost just one game while SRH winning a solitary match. CSK thumped RCB in the last game by 69 runs, extending their winning streak to four games. SRH, on the other hand, suffered a heartbreaking defeat in the Super Over against DC in their previous encounter.
CSK vs SRH: 3 bowlers to watch out for
The pitch in Delhi is somewhat similar to the one in Chennai — there will be assistance for spinners as the game goes on. Initially though, seamers might get a bit of help from the pitch as well as some swing in the air. With quality bowling attacks on both sides, it might well be a low-scoring affair.
On that note, let's have a look at three bowlers who can put severe dents in the opposition batting line-up in the CSK vs SRH encounter:
#3 Deepak Chahar
In today's day and age where fast bowling is all about raw pace, Deepak Chahar is one of the few who relies on conventional swing bowling. He doesn't have express pace, but is mighty effective with the new ball for CSK.
Chahar didn't have the best of IPL seasons last year, picking up just 12 wickets in 14 games. Inconsistent performances saw him get dropped from Team India's T20I squad too. He needs to have a good IPL 2021 season for CSK to make his claim stronger for a berth in the national squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
It is safe to say that Chahar looks to be back to his best, as he has already snapped up eight wickets from just five games. Interestingly, these wickets have come in the form of two four-wicket hauls while he has gone wicketless in other games.
Although it might seem inconsistent, the CSK pacer has shown brilliant control when he has found a bit of help in the air or off the seam. He has also developed variations like the knuckle ball that are good enough to fox the batsmen in case he cannot rely on swing.
The likes of Jonny Bairstow and David Warner have been a bit tentative against swing bowling in the recent past. So if Chahar finds his groove, he can once again run through the inexperienced SRH batting line-up.
#2 Rashid Khan
Rashid Khan has been one of the biggest match-winners to have played in the IPL. The 22-year-old has been a revelation ever since he started playing for SRH and has helped them win several games single-handedly.
This season, teams are carefully dealing with the Afghanistan star, knowing that he is probably SRH's only X factor in the bowling department. Hence, his wickets column so far does not show how good he has been with the ball.
Despite SRH scoring just 7 runs in the Super Over last game, Rashid almost defended the target of 8 against the likes of Rishabh Pant and Shikhar Dhawan. This speaks volumes about how difficult he is for batsmen to put away.
If skipper Warner makes more use of Rashid in the powerplay or towards the death against CSK, where batsmen have no option but to attack the spinner, the 22-year-old might end up picking up a bunch of wickets. He will certainly play a huge role if SRH are to beat CSK tonight.
#1 Ravindra Jadeja
It will be an understatement to say that Ravindra Jadeja found his mojo in the last game against RCB. The left-arm spinner didn't just score a quickfire 62 but also picked up three crucial wickets that broke the back of RCB's run-chase.
The likes of AB de Villiers and Glenn Maxwell were helpless against Jadeja's spin and couldn't predict which one was turning and which one wasn't. The pitch in Delhi will yet again provide that hint of help for the spinners and a bowler like Jadeja could prove to be extremely dangerous.
Jadeja had just 6 wickets in 14 games last year and leaked runs at an economy of 8.75. However, this year that has come down to a superb 6.05 runs per over and the 32-year-old has already picked up five wickets.
The likes of Bairstow have had their issues with left-arm spin and Jadeja could well be the X factor for CSK that could restrict the SRH batting line-up. If he can mix it up with a few straighter ones along with the ones that spin, Jadeja could certainly bowl CSK to victory against SRH.