With nine defeats from 11 matches, the Sunrisers are languishing at the bottom, while KKR, in fourth place with 10 points from 12 matches, still have hopes of qualifying for the knock-out stage.
Virtually out of the play-off race, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will hope to keep their new-found momentum intact when they face table toppers Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
Down and out, the two bottom-placed teams know that this will be their best chance to post their first win in the ongoing 50-over showpiece.
Ashwin and opener KL Rahul played pivotal roles as Kings XI produced a superb all-round performance to script a comfortable 12-run win over Rajasthan Royals in a second leg IPL clash to bring their campaign back on track on Tuesday.
RR have a lot of issues to sort out, particularly in the absence of key foreign players like Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes.
Rishabh Pant's brute power will be put to test against Rashid Khan's bagful of tricks in an IPL encounter where Delhi Capitals will start as favourites against SunRisers Hyderabad due to their better bowling resources.
For Kohli, in probably his last three matches as T20 captain of India, one would expect some prudent team selections and it starts with the question of repeatedly ignoring a player of Ashwin's calibre.
It has been a dramatic turnaround for the KL Rahul-led side after a string a losses earlier in the tournament.
The nail-biting win over defending champions Mumbai Indians was certainly a morale-lifter but the inconsistent Kings XI Punjab have another tough battle at hand when they take on table toppers Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League, in Dubai, on Tuesday.
The 19-year-old wonder spinner has gained 54 points to finish with 813 points, 80 more than second-placed Shadab Khan of Pakistan.
No other spinner headed into the World Cup with a burden of expectation heavier than the one on Rashid Khan's shoulders. But seven matches into the tournament and the poster boy of Afghan cricket is buckling under the weight.
Their bowling attacks struggling to find form, Kings XI Punjab and SunRisers Hyderabad will look towards their power-hitters to do the job when the two erratic teams go head to head in an IPL match, in Dubai, on Thursday.
CSK have better resources but they must utilise them to the hilt. Teams:
Coming off heartbreaking losses, the Indian Premier League game between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab will be a test of character for both sides as they look to get back to winning ways, in Abu Dhabi, on Thursday.
Down but not out. That's what pacer Liam Plunkett tried to convey while summing up the mood in the Delhi Daredevils camp after suffering yet another loss in the Indian Premier League.
The match, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, will also be a face-off between skippers KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, both seen as future India captaincy material.
Afghanistan kept their hopes alive for a place in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 when they defeated the West Indies by three wickets.
Rajneesh Gupta lists interesting records from the first week of the Super 12 competition in the T20 World Cup in the UAE.
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between Afghanistan and Pakistan, in Dubai, on Friday.
A desperate Sunrisers Hyderabad would seek inspiration from skipper David Warner to arrest any further slide when they take on Punjab Kings in an IPL match, in Chennai, on Wednesday.
Getting the combination right would be topmost on Sunrisers Hyderabad's to-do list when they take on a qualitatively superior Mumbai Indians in an IPL encounter in Chennai on Saturday, trying to arrest an early slide after back-to-back defeats.
Eager to keep their semi-final hopes alive, a desperate Bangladesh will have their work cut out when they take on a spirited Afghanistan in a do-or-die World Cup encounter in Southampton on Monday. England's defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka on Friday breathed air into Bangladesh's hopes of securing a semi-final berth and the 'Tigers' will be keen on making the most of the situation starting with a win over the bottom-placed Afghanistan.
Images from Day 1 of the one-off Test, between India and Afghanistan, in Bengaluru, on Thursday.
Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi are a spin-bowling unit the equal of any in the world
A win for Punjab will elevate them to the top four, while a victory for KKR will take them to 14 points
There were close matches, acrobatic fielding, some sharp bowling and big runs scored in the round-robin phase. Here are some memorable moments from the World Cup so far
England still top team in ODIs, but only just
Former Australian batsman Mike Hussey advised Indian bowlers to take pace off the ball to tackle formidable opener Fakhar Zaman when India clashes with arch-rivals Pakistan in the Asia Cup at Dubai on September 19.
Former champions Kolkata Knight Riders will look to strike a perfect balance under the astute leadership of Eoin Morgan when they open their IPL campaign against a consistent Sunrisers Hyderabad in Chennai on Sunday.
Afghanistan captain Asghar Stanikzai believes the 'world-class' spinners in his team will pose a serious challenge to the much-vaunted Indian batting line-up in the historic one-off Test in Bengaluru from June 14.
KL Rahul smashed a brilliant 79 from just 56 balls, but lacked support from the other end as Kings XI finished on a disappointing 167 for eight.
A charged up Sunrisers Hyderabad will have revenge on their minds when they face an in-form Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League, in Hyderabad, on Thursday.
Sunrsiers' middle-order has hardly been tested and when the opportunity came against Mumbai Indians, the likes of Vijay Shankar, Manish Pandey, Deepak Hooda and Yusuf Pathan fell flat.
While Kings XI's biggest star Chris Gayle scored a 47-ball 79 in the Jaipur match, his Jamaican compatriot Andre Russell also looked in blistering touch for KKR in the match against Sunriserrs Hyderabad. Their rivalry will be one of the sub plots of Wednesday's clash in Kolkata.
With a debate raging over the run out, it remains to be seen how Ashwin and Co. start afresh in what will be their first away match of the season.
Both KXIP and the Royals would look to build a winning momentum after starting the tournament as underdogs.
Shikhar Dhawan, who was highest run-getter with 342 runs, gained four slots to reach fifth position.
'Overall as a team, they cannot be seen as walkover. They're very competitive as a one-day and T20 side. They keep proving it over and over again'
All-rounder Imad Wasim's unbeaten 49 guided Pakistan to a thrilling three-wicket victory over minnows Afghanistan in Leeds on Saturday, maintaining their hopes of reaching the World Cup semi-finals.
A wise word from Mahendra Singh Dhoni inspired Mohammed Shami to bowl the delivery that earned his place in ICC Men's Cricket World Cup history.
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