Battle Of Survival: Can SRH End Their Losing Streak Against CSK?

Both sides have endured a turbulent season, notching just four points from eight games, and must now win all remaining fixtures to keep their slim qualification hopes alive.

Known to make the most of home conditions, five-time champions CSK find themselves in unchartered territory as they haven't been able to read the wickets well at the Chepauk.

They started strong at their fortress, dominating Mumbai Indians as Noor Ahmad spun a web around the visitors. But the early promise fizzled out quickly, with three successive losses at home.

The also endured the ignominy of posting their lowest-ever IPL total at home -- 103/9 against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Head coach Stephen Fleming has also voiced frustration over the Chepauk surface, which has offered more to seamers than CSK's usual spin-heavy attack.

There away form has not been any better either, with just one win in four attempts.

CSK have lacked firepower in the batting department and captain Ruturaj Gaikwad's absence due to an injury has only made it worse for the storied outfit.

MS Dhoni has returned as full-time captain. While his knee continues to limit mobility, the former Indian captain's leadership remains invaluable.

His death-overs batting, field placements, and ability to recalibrate the bowling attack could be key in CSK's revival.

In encouraging signs, 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre made a promising debut against MI with the bat. The franchise has also roped in South Africa's Dewald Brevis in a bid to strengthen their power-hitting department.

SRH, meanwhile, have endured an equally erratic campaign. A bright start gave way to inconsistency, with their ultra-aggressive, attack-at-all-costs strategy falling flat.

The explosive opening pair of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, so vital last season, have failed to hit the same heights this year.

While Sharma's brilliance secured a win against Punjab Kings, Head is yet to truly make his mark.

The heavy dependence on their top two has exposed the frailty of the middle order, which has struggled to absorb pressure, something head coach Daniel Vettori also conceded after the seven-wicket loss to Mumbai Indians.

"When Head and Abhishek don't succeed, then it's the responsibility of the other batsmen. Potentially that's what we haven't had this season around. The ability for partnerships, for one or two guys to step up," Vettori said.

Head-to-head record
Both the teams clashed on 22 occasions, out of which the Chennai-based franchise has a clear domination with a 16-6 record.

In their last encounter during the first leg of IPL 2025, CSK registered a dominating victory by 78 runs. However, SRH won their clash with the yellow army in 2024 by six wickets.

The Chepauk Surface is traditionally a bowling friendly track, providing advantage to spinners in particular. A score of 160 or above would be a good enough target.

Team winning the toss might decide to bowl first as dew does play a role as the game progresses.

However, CSK with a strong spin line-up faltered at their own den this season. While SRH too had found it hard to perform on tricky pitches.

Both the teams are struggling with out-of-form batting units with top order batters having a key role to play.

If SRH's openers perform they can steal the match just as it happened in the only two matches the side has won. However, both the teams middle-order has provided some support with Jadeja and Dube standing for CSK and Klaasen and Manohar steering SRH in their respective previous matches.

Having said that, CSK might have an advantage in tonight's match with a team that is comparatively more balanced and a strong spin unit.

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Atharva Taide, Abhinav Manohar, Aniket Verma, Sachin Baby, Smaran Ravichandran, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Travis Head, Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Wiaan Mulder, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Shami, Rahul Chahar, Simarjeet Singh, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga.

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (c&wk), Dewald Brevis, Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Shaik Rasheed, Vansh Bedi, Andre Siddharth, Ayush Mhatre, Rachin Ravindra, Ravichandran Ashwin, VIjay Shankar, Sam Curran, Anshul Kamboj, Deepak Hooda, Jamie Overton, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Khaleel Ahmed, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Nathan Ellis, Shreyas Gopal, Matheesha Pathirana.

Match starts at 7:30pm IST.