Shortly after halfway through the competition, performances by virat Kohli and his men suggested that they had plugged the holes in their game and were heading towards coherence. But it turned out to be all sizzle and nothing towards the commercial end of the league, as they lost four straight games and went from a team locked in for a playoff spot to a team struggling to stay afloat.
In stark contrast, Sunrisers Hyderabad rebounded from a disastrous start, stopped its slide at the last minute and returned to the fray with four wins in five matches.
In Abu Dhabi, when the two teams meet in the Eliminator on Friday night, form and momentum rests in Hyderabad, but the Bengaluru-based franchise will be the hungriest of the two teams from the south.
While the Hyderabad unit has won the coveted trophy twice (including as Deccan chargers in 2009), RCB has had to settle for bridesmaid status three times.
Having split their two games in the league phase, little seems to separate the sides. But in terms of team composition and balance, they are diametrically opposite.
Any competition against SRH is a double challenge for Kohli & Co. Bowlers have their task cut out against a deep batting lineup that can be explosive in death overs. SRH bowlers present an overwhelming hurdle. If RCB’s top order doesn’t skyrocket, the failing mid-order will be under pressure to shed the brittle, glass-like quality that has characterized its season.
There are no more second chances, so both teams will do their best to keep their title aspirations intact.
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