IPL 2019 | Trent Boult is a pedigrees replacement for Kagiso Rabada, says Harsha Bhogle

Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals will lock horns with each other tonight in the first eliminator and there is plenty at stake for both franchises, who found contrasting ways to reach the playoffs. While Delhi were convincing, putting up a show after another, Sunrisers had scarp through and became the first team in the history of IPL to qualify for the playoffs with 12 points. In the eliminator game, as the two sides square off with each other, Harsha Bhogle believes a lot of factors would come into play while deciding the outcome of the game.

"Their trade for Shikhar Dhawan has turned out to be good as was the contrarian decision to pick Ishant Sharma. But the Sunrisers will be aware that there are now a few soft spots in the hard exterior of their opponents. Prithvi Shaw and Colin Ingram have tailed off, Rishabh Pant has been inconsistent, Chris Morris had a disappointing IPL and Kagiso Rabada is gone. 

“On the plus side though, when Pant comes off he wins games, Shreyas Iyer has been impressive and Trent Boult is a pedigrees replacement for Rabada. They might well point out too that in the absence of Warner and Bairstow, their opponents are even less prepared," Bhogle wrote in his column for the Times of India.

After the departure of David Warner and Jonny Bairstow, Manish Pandey and Kane Williamson ably led the batting unit and ensured that the middle-order failures slipped under the carpet. Pointing that out, Bhogle said the Sunrisers must be optimistic to win the game.

"The Sunrisers chose very well and with Manish Pandey and Kane Williamson back in form, they must be optimistic. But they still need more from the Indian core in the middle order and must hope that Rashid Khan's form is an aberration and he returns to being the leader of the attack," Bhogle concluded.

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