Royal Challengers Bangalore will have it all to do when they travel to Hyderabad to take on the in-form Sunrisers at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Thursday. The last time these two sides clashed earlier this season, RCB conceded an IPL-record 287 runs. We’ve prepared the best bets to take for Match 41 of IPL 2024.
Venue: Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium
Betting Preview
SRH have demonstrated remarkable scoring ability this season, posting 260+ runs on three occasions and boasting an average score of nearly 221, including run chases. They are currently third in the standings, having lost just two matches. Their hefty scoring has come with a relatively low loss of 41 wickets, and they lead the league with an average of 71 runs in the powerplay, thanks to the explosive starts by openers Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma.
Their dominance in the powerplay is underscored by achieving the highest opening partnerships in six out of eight matches. Despite having the league’s highest average conceding score of 204, their strong start often tilts matches in their favour. Captain Pat Cummins has been effective with the ball, taking nine wickets with an economy of eight runs per over.
RCB’s recent history shows five losses in the last eight head-to-head matches, and their fortune doesn’t seem to improve with the toss; they’ve lost four times this season after choosing to bowl first. Their record in Hyderabad is particularly poor at 1/8 when winning the toss, whereas SRH thrives under the same conditions with a 21/6 record.
RCB’s motivation may be decreasing as their chances of qualifying for the playoffs look slim, with seven losses in eight matches. Their top bowler, Yash Dayal, has taken seven wickets but at a high cost, while Virat Kohli’s excellent form, scoring 379 runs at an average of 63.16, has not been enough to compensate for the team’s overall struggles. Dinesh Karthik remains the only other consistent performer with the bat for the team this season.
Expect a run-fest with the chasing side having a good chance. SRH will enter the game as overwhelming favourites and should keep RCB winless for seven games in a row. Back Sunrisers Hyderabad to win,
Prediction: Sunrisers Hyderabad to win 1.64.
Key Battle: RCB veteran Faf du Plessis has not had his best IPL season so far, averaging a modest 29.87 this season. But he has an excellent record when playing SRH, with an average of 70.33 against the Sunrisers, and has smashed 3/95 from only 58 balls faced by SRH skipper Pat Cummins, who has an economy rate of only eight runs per over in H2H matches.
Key Stats
The average score at this venue this season is a whopping 220.
SRH struck the most sixes in four of their last six matches.
Conversely, RCB have conceded the most sixes in six of their last eight games.
RCB were outscored during the powerplay overs in six of their eight games, conceding a league-worst 10.79rpo during the opening six overs.
Abhishek Sharma averages 118 at a scoring rate of 9.32rpo against the five bowlers RCB used in their last game.
Virat Kohli scored 100 off 63 balls at this venue last season and has registered 50-plus scores in each of his last three T20 appearances here.
Overall in T20s, he averages 59.20 at this venue.
Cameron Green averages 103 at a scoring rate of 10.3rpo in all T20s against the set of bowlers Sunrisers used in their last match, whilst Dinesh Karthik averages 81 at 7.91rpo.
Best Bets
Best Bet: Highest individual score to be over 74.5 at 1.86.
Value Bet: Abhishek Sharma to score 50+ runs at 3.75.