Gujarat Titans pride themselves on consistency and will be expected to produce a solid show against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in Ahmedabad on Monday after a rare "flat" performance against Mumbai Indians.
While Robin Uthappa had scored a fifty in one of the games, the likes of Moeen Ali and Ambati Rayudu have failed to capitalise on their starts.
Sunrisers Hyderabad seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar says their bowling unit is one of the best in IPL.
Five-time champions Mumbai Indians will look to continue their winning momentum when they face a resurgent Sunrisers Hyderabad.
The in-form Virat Kohli was on Monday rested for the forthcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka, while Delhi's left-arm spinner Pawan Negi was a surprise inclusion for the three-match series.
Each year, Samson has played a few match-defining knocks but this time he would have to go the extra mile if the Royals want to win that elusive second title.
Besides Kohli, seam bowlers Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma could also be rested for the game, according to reports.
Pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar was quick to concede that India's bowling attack gave away 30 runs too many as South Africa amassed 286 in their first innings, after being reduced to 12 for 3 in the first 30 minutes on the opening day of the first Test, in Cape Town, on Friday.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar registered remarkable figures of 2/15 in four overs, including 17 dot balls, in a high-scoring contest which saw over 400 runs being scored.
India medium pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Monday blamed the pitch in Southampton for the bowling attack's poor showing in the ongoing third Test as England declared at 569/7 in their first innings.
Ahead of the two-match Twenty20 series against West Indies, Indian cricketers, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar today visited the home of American basketball team Miami Heats in Florida.
The swashbuckling Australia opener said the slow pitches in Chennai and Delhi will suit his team.
India opener Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of the remaining two T20 Internationals against Sri Lanka following a wrist injury.
David Miller lavished praise on fellow teammate Heinrich Klaasen for his 'phenomenal' knock.
Another failure to win an ICC tournament will put Virat Kohli's leadership future in doubt. When BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah hold a virtual meet with the national selectors in a couple of days' time, the leadership issue will be discussed.
'There should have been one extra fast bowler. One spinner less.'
Sanju Samson has never enjoyed the backing of the team management while Riyan Parag and Abhishek Sharma were ignored despite good showing with the bat in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy, the national T20 tournament.
During Wednesday's training, a Jasprit Bumrah yorker hit Shankar flush on his toes.
Images from the Indian Premier League match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore, in Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday.
Following his return to form in the abruptly-ended West Indies series, Indian batsman Virat Kohli claimed the number two slot in the ICC rankings while swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar broke into the top-10 for the first time in his career.
Operating like a well-oiled unit, Chennai Super Kings will start as overwhelming favourites when they clash with struggling Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Team India will have to choose between experimenting and continuing the winning combination
If Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals on Thursday, then Mumbai Indians may find it very difficult to qualify for the play-offs even if they beat Sunrisers Hyderabad in their final league match.
Besides KL Rahul, another individual who would like to answer his critics with solid performances is Pant.
Referring to India's problem of plenty in pace bowling, Kohli said, as a captain, he couldn't have been happier.
Tim David was run out after a quickfire 46 from 18 balls to all but end Mumbai Indians's hopes.
India have only themselves to blame for their below-par showing in the Asia Cup as they struggled to put up consistent performances with both bat and ball.
As expected, the Indian selectors decided to stick with the same 16-member squad, which beat Bangladesh in the one-off Test, for the first two matches of the forthcoming four-match Test series against Australia, starting in Pune, on February 23.
Delhi Capitals are at the bottom of the 10-team league with 2 points from 6 matches SunRisers Hyderabad are 9th with 4 points from 6 matches.
India T20I skipper Rohit Sharma has said that playing alongside Trent Boult for Mumbai Indians has helped both of them know each other's weaknesses and strengths and as a result, it is always a good battle when they play for their national teams.
The Australian captain Aaron Finch struggled across all three formats during the India series, specially while trying to navigate Bhuvneshwar's inswinging deliveries.
Arshdeep Singh removed Pakistan's in-form openers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to give India a perfect start with the ball.
KL Rahul was dropped while senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and left-arm tweaker Ravindra Jadeja continued to be left out of the Indian ODI team, for the forthcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand.
The India pacer bowled an impressive first spell, comprising pace and swing, as he finished with brilliant figures of 6.1-2-9-3, including the wicket of the dangerous David Warner, in the second One-Day International at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, on Thursday, which India won by 50 runs to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.
Who would you pick in India's playing XI for Tuesday's first One-Day International against England?
'There is a little bit of home advantage and you got to use your matches at home. It's your facility but in Hyderabad, I think it's fair conditions. At the end of the day, better team on the day wins the game. I must say I congratulate the ground staff for producing good tracks, it's just each and every time, we came up short.'
Skipper Rishabh Pant (234 from nine games) showed glimpses of his destructive power but the team would want more from its skipper who is more than capable of hammering any attack into submission.
PHOTOS of the IPL 2023 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Thursday.
Surya continues to lead the batting list with 906 rating points.
Being aware about his limitations as a bowler has been key to Bhuvneshwar Kumar's success at the international level, feels his childhood coach Sanjay Rastogi.
