Richard Mann previews the Indian Premier League clash between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad and fancies the visitors to continue their fine campaign.
Table-toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad have already booked their ticket for the playoff stages of IPL2018 and given they have enjoyed such a tremendous campaign so far, it is surprising to see the boys in orange available at 13/10 for today's clash with Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Kane Williamson has led an outstanding Sunrisers bowling attack with aplomb this season and last week's defeat at the hands of the classy Chennai Super Kings was their first loss in seven games.
Sunrisers have made a fine habit of winning close matches, especially when defending seemingly under-par totals, and with a bowling unit boasting the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan and Shakib Al Hasan, it is easy to see why.
Kumar was the star of the show when these two sides met in Hyderabad earlier in the tournament, some superb death bowling from the seamer helping his side edge home by five runs having looked dead and buried when needing to defend only 25 from 18 balls.
Kumar delivered two of the final three overs in that thriller; his 18th over only went for six runs - four of which came off a genuine outside edge - before he closed out the game with a final over where he only conceded just four.
The beauty of this Sunrisers side is the understated way they go about their business. They don't rely on a few marquee names to carry the side, but instead draw upon a real team spirit which allows everyone to contribute.
The bowling is perfectly balanced and the batting is strong from the top, with Shikhar Dhawan and Williamson pillars of consistency, while there is a lovely mix of flair and power lower down the order.
For Bangalore, the season has been typical of this star-studded side that has so often promised plenty but ultimately been unable to deliver.
Captain Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers stand out in a seemingly daunting batting line up but overseas recruits Brendon McCullum and Quinton de Kock have failed to have the impact that would have been expected of them.
As a result, Kohli has found himself batting in a number of top-order positions with Moeen Ali the latest marquee signing to find himself up the order.
Kohli and de Villiers will have clearly given Williamson a few headaches over the last few days but the Sunrisers skipper will know that there there isn't much else to fear from the Bangalore batting order and he will be backing his bowlers to get the job done.
Bangalore's own bowling remains weak - Umesh Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal apart - and although they have kept their playoff hopes alive with recent victories over Dehli Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab, those results are hardly worth getting carried away with.
Dehli remain rooted to the bottom of the table and with Punjab in frightening freefall, Bangalore could be in for a rude awakening taking on much stronger opposition today.
At 13/10, the excellent Sunrisers rate outstanding value.
Posted at 1010 BST on 17/05/18.
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