Unlike their opponents Chennai Super Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad's journey to the Indian Premier League (IPL) final came through a bumpy road. The Kane Williamson-led Orange Army had to travel to Kolkata to book their final berth after knocking out two-time former champions Kolkata Knight Riders by 14 runs in Qualifier 2 on Friday.
The high-rated two southern rivals last met on May 22 in Qualifier 1, which eventually concluded in the favour of CSK. Chennai, who won the title in 2010 and 2011, edged past their rivals in a low-scoring thriller after looking down in the dumps at one stage during the run-chase.
The IPL 2018 table toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad have proved themselves as the strongest bowling unit in the 11th edition of the cash-rich league.
SRH captain and textbook batsman Kane Williamson is looking in a perfect shape for T-20 cricket, for the first time in his career. He has scored 688 runs in 16 matches with a strike rate of 143.33.
Hyderabad boast of a bowling line up that can defend totals even under 150s as they have done that in the recent past. Their bowlers excelled maximum when they managed to defend just 119 runs and 133 runs against Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab respectively.
SRH strike bowlers such as Sidharth Kaul and Sandeep Sharma have been expensive in death overs in last few matches. Adding to that, Bhuvneshwar Kumar's absence has also been a big factor behind their low performance.
Star spinner Rashid Khan will be a crucial player for them in the final. Big ticket batsman Manish Pandey has to take some responsibility in the middle-order to prove his worth. Shikhar Dhawan also needs to continue the momentum he has built in past few matches.
Chennai Super Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, IPL Final
Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Date and Time: May 27, 07:00 PM IST
Sunrisers Hyderabad' journey to IPL 2018 Final
Match 1, SRH vs RR: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 9 wickets
Match 2, SRH vs MI: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 1 wicket
Match 3, KKR vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 5 wickets
Match 4, KXIP vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 15 runs
Match 5, SRH vs CSK: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 4 runs
Match 6, MI vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 31 runs
Match 7, SRH vs KXIP: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 13 runs
Match 8, RR vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 11 runs
Match 9, SRH vs DD: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 7 wickets
Match 10, SRH vs RCB: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 5 runs
Match 11, DD vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 9 wickets
Match 12, CSK vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 8 wickets
Match 13, RCB vs SRH: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 14 runs
Match 14, SRH vs KKR: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 5 wickets
Qualifier 1, SRH vs CSK: Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 2 wickets
