IPL 2021, LIVE Cricket Score, Rajasthan Royals (RR) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH): Toss news: Kane Williamson wins the toss and SRH opt to bowl first.

Preview: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will look to start afresh under new skipper Kane Williamson when they take on fellow strugglers Rajasthan Royals in Match 28 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 in New Delhi, as the league stage approaches the halfway stage.

With SRH finding themselves bottom of the points table with just one win in six games, the team management decided to sack David Warner and skipper and pass the baton to New Zealand’s Kane Williamson. The Black Caps skipper has previously captained Hyderabad in 2018 and 2019, and the Orange Army will hope change in leadership brings change in fortunes.

Warner has been in woeful form this season, aggregating just 193 runs from six matches at a strike rate of 110.28.

However, his place in the playing XI might come under doubt after the franchise confirmed on their Twitter page that the team management would choose to change the overseas combination. This could mean a place for England’s Jason Roy at the top of the order to fill up for Warner. Roy is yet to play a match this season after being signed up by Hyderabad as a replacement for the injured Mitchell Marsh.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has been SRH’s impressive bowler so far, topping the team’s bowling charts with nine wickets from six games.

In contrast, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been battling with injuries and lack in form. He sustained a thigh strain against Punjab Kings on 21 April, and eventually missed Hyderabad’s last two matches against Delhi Capitals (DC) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He has picked up just three wickets from four games.

SRH will be desperate for Bhuvneshwar to recover from his injury and more importantly return to some good form.

RR, on the other hand, are placed seventh in the points table with four points (two wins). They have been largely inconsistent for most part of the tournament, and despite enduring a patchy form with the bat since his century in the first match, Sanju Samson seems to have found some touch with scores of 42 in both the previous matches.

He has been RR’s top run-scorer with 229 runs from six games. Jos Buttler, barring scores of 49 ( vs CSK) and 41 ( vs MI) has been in woeful form and he will have the task cut out against the likes of Rashid Khan and Khaleel Ahmed.

IPL costliest-ever cricketer Chris Morris tops the team’s bowling charts with 11 wickets but he is yet to showcase a notable effort with the bat, barring the unbeaten 36 against DC on 15 April.

Chetan Sakariya has been the find of the campaign for RR with seven wickets from six games.

Squads:

Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (captain & wicketkeeper), Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Manan Vohra, Anuj Rawat, Riyan Parag, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Shreyas Gopal, Mayank Markande, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, KC Cariappa, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh.

Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner, Kane Williamson (c), Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Manish Pandey, Sreevats Goswami (wicketkeeper), Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), Priyam Garg, Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad, Virat Singh, Jason Holder, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Shahbaz Nadeem, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Siddarth Kaul, Basil Thampi, Jagadeesha Suchith, Kedar Jadhav, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman.