Big Picture

In-form teams are entitled to the odd bad day. On Sunday, Chennai Super Kings, on top with 18 points and two wins away from the playoffs, had one. Nobody would have expected the table leaders to go tumbling for 79, the lowest team score in this IPL. The captain MS Dhoni and coach Stephen Fleming conceded it was good in a way that the meltdown happened now, rather than in the later stages, when qualifications for the playoffs are at stake. Super Kings have relied on their batting depth to get them this far, but the slow pitch in Hyderabad will test them.

Sunrisers Hyderabad, like Mumbai Indians, haven't lost a game at home. They have a chance at making it back to the top four. They are presently at No.5 and a win will knock Royal Challengers Bangalore down a notch. Momentum is on their side, after two consecutive wins.

Form guide

(most recent first) Chennai Super Kings LWWWW
Sunrisers Hyderabad WWLLW

Players to watch

Karan Sharma, the Sunrisers legspinner, has picked up five wickets from seven games this season. Not sensational numbers, but he has made a bigger impact with his economy-rate of 5.59, which is gold dust in this format. With an action similar to Zimbabwe's Paul Strang, Sharma has emerged as one of the relatively unknown Indian players to watch out for.

S Badrinath has featured in all 12 Super Kings games this season, but has been underutilised, having batted in only six innings. Badrinath has been a regular with the team since the opening IPL, but has been shunted down the order below the allrounders Dwayne Bravo and Chris Morris, unless the team is in trouble. He was promoted to No.4 against Mumbai Indians but was dismissed for a third-ball duck.

Stats and trivia

• S Badrinath has three scores of 34 this season

• MS Dhoni has hit the most runs off Dale Steyn in the IPL - 76 from 42 balls. It's the most Steyn has conceded to any batsman

Quotes

"Four more games are left and it's a pretty long tournament to maintain your standards."
Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming

"There have been a number of games in which teams, including ours, have not scored what we felt was a par score on it. I think we have bowled particularly well on it, at times our opponents too bowled well on it. I think it is not as bad as it looks statistically. It is decently good surface."
Sunrisers Hyderabad coach Tom Moody on the Uppal pitch