Indian T20 League 2022: Match 70- Hyderabad vs Punjab- Preview, Playing XI's, Pitch Report & Updates

The final group stage encounter of the Indian T20 League 2022 is between Hyderabad and Punjab. While both the teams are out of the race to the top four, they would want to end their campaign on a positive note. Both teams have won six out of their 13 games, but Punjab stand seventh on the points table with a better net run rate. On the other hand, Hyderabad are eight in the standings. The final league stage match will be played at the Wankhede Stadium on the 22nd of May.

Team Updates

Hyderabad

The orange army have had a dramatic season this time around. They lost their first two games, then won five in a row before going on a five-match losing run. They did, however, win their previous game against Mumbai. A brilliant all-round performance won them the match. They'd like to have one more win under their belt before the season ends.

Kane Williamson, the team's captain, will be unavailable for the last match of the season. In his absence, Bhuvneshwar Kumar may captain the team. Alongside the Kiwi skipper, Fazhalhaq Farooki might miss the game, with Abdul Samad and Marco Jansen filling in.

Players to watch out for

Aiden Markram- Aiden Markram has been brilliant for Hyderabad throughout the season. He has scored 360 runs at an average of 51.42 in 13 games. He also has a decent strike rate of 140 this season.

Rahul Tripathi- Rahul Tripathi has been the most consistent batter for the team throughout the season. He has scored 393 runs including three half-centuries in 13 games. He has a strike rate of 161.7, and an average of 39.3.

Probable Playing XI

Abhishek Sharma, Priyam Garg, Rahul Tripathi, Abdul Samad, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (c), Marco Jansen, Umran Malik, T Natarajan

Punjab

Throughout the season, Punjab have been inconsistent. They have not won two games in a row this season, which has been a significant disappointment for the team. They are coming off a loss against Delhi in their last game. Their batters faltered, and no one except Jitesh Sharma could do much during that game. They eventually lost the match by 17 runs.

In their final match, they would want to rectify their batting error and perform better. The Mayank Agarwal-led team would not want to make any changes to their playing XI from the last match. However, they would to get a win under their belt.

Players to watch out for

Shikhar Dhawan- Shikhar Dhawan has been consistent for the team throughout the tournament. He has scored 421 runs at an average of 38.27 in 13 matches this season. However, his strike rate of 122.7 has not been impressive. He would want to improve on that in the next game.

Kagiso Rabada- Kagiso Rabada has made the most of his time with the Punjab team. In the 12 matches he has played, he has picked 22 wickets for them.

Probable Playing XI

Jonny Bairstow, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Liam Livingstone, Mayank Agarwal (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Harpreet Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh

Head to Head

Pitch Report

Because of the number of games played here over the season, spinners have some assistance from the surface. The batters will have to take their time to settle in the middle. The team winning the toss would want to bat first here.

Match Details

Date- 22nd May 2022

Time- 7:30 p.m. (IST)

Venue- Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Broadcast- Star Sports Network, Disney+ Hotstar