IPL 2016: 5 reasons why Sunrisers Hyderabad can stun Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final
Sunrisers Hyderabad made a dramatic entry into the final of IPL 2016 on Friday after winning both their playoff games against Kolkata Knight Riders and Gujarat Lions. They have now set up a clash with Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday.
While Royal Challengers Bangalore have hogged all the limelight this season thanks to their charismatic captain, Virat Kohli, the Hyderabad team has done admirably well to make it to the final without attracting much attention. And after their performances in the eliminator and the qualifier, where they trumped two really formidable sides, they’ve shown that there is no good reason why they can’t lift the trophy.
While the Kohli-led team might enter the final on Sunday as favorites, Warner’s side are well capable of raining on their parade.
Here are the 5 reasons why Sunrisers Hyderabad can stun Royal Challengers in the final of IPL 2016.
#1 David Warner – The one man army
Like many times this season, David Warner’s spectacular run with the bat has gone largely unnoticed, thanks to Virat Kohli’s inhuman exploits. However, the destructive opener would hardly mind that as long as he keeps on playing match winning knocks like the one he played against Gujarat Lions to steer his team to a victory, which at one point looked extremely difficult.
After being pushed down the batting order in the World T20, Warner has reveled in the role of an opener. He has got Hyderabad off to a flier on several occasions along with his opening partner Shikhar Dhawan and when the challenge came to finish the game against Gujarat in the 2nd Qualifier, Warner was up to it again by finishing with 93* in a chase of 163.
The IPL final also presents Warner with the opportunity to prove a point to Cricket Australia, who have time and again overlooked Warner as a serious contender for the captaincy of the national side despite a stellar record in all formats.