IPL 2018: Four tactical moves which can help SRH snap out of their losing run
After a booming start to the eleventh season of the IPL, Sunrisers Hyderabad seem to have lost their Midas' touch coming into the fag end of the tournament. Nine wins out of the first eleven have turned into as many out of fifteen and their story seems to be going on a similar page as Delhi Daredevils' in 2012, their last graceful outing in the IPL.
SRH's circumstances also make for an important insight into the intensive nature of the tournament where peaking too early can sometimes be a disadvantage in disguise. But the fact that they topped the tables despite two apparent form slumps and conceding more centuries than anyone this season, is relaxation enough that all is not over for them yet.
When Kane Williamson's men walk out against a partisan Eden Gardens crowd today, the demons in their heads and KKR's winning streak won't be their only impediments on the road to the finals.
Going into a do-or-die game, here is what the men in orange can do to turn things around in their favour, including a couple of left-field suggestions for good measure.
#1 Bowl Rashid Khan in the death overs
KKR's middle order comprises of three right-handed batsmen and the singular southpaw in Nitish Rana. With the two conventional kinds of spinners in Shakib Al Hasan and Yusuf Pathan to accommodate the middle overs, Williamson can take the gamble of bowling Rashid in the death overs against the three right-handers.
With the Eden Surface expected to offer grip and lots of tweak for the spinners, Rashid's flat trajectory coupled with his flummoxing variations can do charms in the time of the innings where batsmen look to throw caution to the air and as players found out in the BBL, Rashid Khan is hard to get away with if you approach him with that attitude.
Given that SRH have struggled in the finishing overs lately, and on the verge of losing their nominal mantle of the best bowling lineup, this just might be the time for Kane to try something out of the blue to throw the batsmen off their guard, especially while defending when playing out a bowler's quota of overs at the death is sacrilege.