Daijiworld Media Network

Pune, Apr 17: Pune vs Hyderabad. A low key contest but it's a very important clash for both teams. Pune will be confident after defeating Chennai at Chepauk, while Hyderabad will need to get back to winning ways after being outplayed at the Eden Gardens by Kolkata. The good thing for Hyderabad is that they've won more games than they've lost, and they defeated Pune in their earlier encounter as well.

Pune have won the toss and elected to field

White: 'Sangakkara won't be available in Chennai so it allows us a chance to give de Kock a few games. I'm not sure what the pitch will do but happy to be batting first. We're playing 2 leg spinners in the team.'
 
Angelo: 'I couldn't travel to Chennai, but it was good to see the boys doing well there. Ross misses out unfortunately, but that's how it goes. The pitch might play a bit slow but it's better to bat second as we are unsure about it.'

Cameron White is leading Hyderabad. de Kock is playing.

Angelo Mathews is leading Pune. Again. Ross Taylor has been dropped.

Teams:

Hyderabad (Playing XI): Parthiv Patel(w), Quinton de Kock, Hanuma Vihari, Cameron White(c), Biplab Samantray, Thisara Perera, Ashish Reddy, Karan Sharma, Amit Mishra, Ishant Sharma, Dale Steyn

Pune (Playing XI): Robin Uthappa(w), Aaron Finch, Tirumalsetti Suman, Steven Smith, Manish Pandey, Abhishek Nayar, Angelo Mathews(c), Mitchell Marsh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Rahul Sharma

Team news: Yuvraj is still not hundred percent fit so it's unlikely that he'll play. It'll be interesting to see which 4 foreigners Pune pick; Steven Smith has sealed his spot, so how will they accomodate their regular captain Angelo Mathews? For Hyderabad, the World T20 championship winning skipper - Darren Sammy - has arrived. Let's see if he gets a game though.

Preview

Hyderabad face an acid test when they take on Pune in Pune in what would be a crucial Indian T20 League clash for both teams. While Pune managed to stun Chennai in their own backyard, Hyderabad were dealt a heavy defeat by Kolkata at the Eden Gardens. Their batting has let the team down but a superb bowling attack led by Dale Steyn and Ishant Sharma has helped Hyderabad stay on fourth in the rankings. Pune, meanwhile, were bolstered by Steve Smith's inclusion and it will be interesting to see which of the foreigners is asked to cool his heels once Angelo Mathews returns to the side.

Pune

Team News: First the bad news: Yuvraj Singh will continue to sit out. The good news: Skipper Angelo Mathews will be available for selection once again after missing out in the team's sensational victory in Chennai but that is more likely to compound problems for the management. Who do they leave out? Ross Taylor continued to fail with the bat but he proved to be an astute leader while Steve Smith, who finally got a chance this season, did his reputation no harm with a Man-of-the-Match winning performance.

Aaron Finch has been destructive at the top with two half-centuries so far and Mitchell Marsh adds a lot of all-round value to the side. But Pune would rather ponder on who to drop rather than scratch their heads on who to pick. However, even with Mathews back in the side, Pune will be eager for him to perform. The Sri Lankan is an ace T20 cricketer but has failed to fire so far in the Indian T20 League. Taylor's form will also be a concern while Yuvraj's fitness has been a headache for coach Allan Donald. If Pune get all their key players firing, they could be a tough lot to face.

In-form player: Aaron Finch has been a packed a punch at the top of the order. He got a chance against Rajasthan and reposed the management's faith with a blistering half-century. The Australian missed out against Mumbai but roared back with another savage fifty against Chennai. Finch is clearly a vital cog in Pune's wheel and a good start by him will lay the foundation for the rest of the batting line-up to pile on a big score.

Team form: Defeated Chennai by 24 runs

Hit: Steven Smith got a chance in Chennai when Angelo Mathews was rendered unavailable thanks to his nationality. The Australian powered away to a blazing, unbeaten 39 and was electric on the field to win the Man-of-the-Match award. His inclusion almost brought a fresh lease of life to Pune's troubled middle-order and it was refreshing to see him take the attack to the opposition, something Pune have been unwilling to do. After a strong opening stand, the team seemed to be falling apart yet again before Smith played some big shots to help Pune finish on 159 from their 20 overs.

Miss: Ross Taylor is a fine batsman but has struggled in the middle at the Indian T20 League. His role is vital to the set-up but the former Kiwi skipper has lost his touch somewhat. With scores of 19, 17, 15, 4 and 8, Taylor has left a lot to be desired. Though he continues to be an asset on the field, some runs from his bat could see Pune challenging the best in the business.

Hyderabad

Team News: Hyderabad are currently placed fourth in the rankings after three wins from their five games but skipper Kumar Sangakkara will be the first to admit that the side has a lot to work on. But he would take a lot of confidence going into this game - Hyderabad had started off their campaign this season with a fine 22 run win against the same opponents. Sangakkara needs his middle-order to come good, especially the local Indian talent. Hanuma Vihari started the tournament in style but has faded away since while the captain himself has not been among the runs. Cameron White was sent up to open the innings with Parthiv Patel against Kolkata but the pair was too slow in pursuit of a daunting 181. Patel on the other hand, has got some starts but has not converted his scores into big ones.

In-form player: Surprisingly for a team that has won three games out of five, no one in particular has really threatened to take the tournament by storm. But they have been served well by Dale Steyn, who has so far taken six wickets and kept the opposition honest. If the batsmen help by setting up strong totals or at the very least by not messing up easy chases, Hyderabad would be a far better side.

Team form: Lost to Kolkata by 48 runs

Hit: There's no getting away from Hyderabad's bowling attack. Once Steyn and Sharma are done with the new ball, batsmen have the not very pleasant task of dealing with Amit Mishra's wily leg-spinners. He has been on top of his game, picking up five wickets so far and even scoring some useful runs against Delhi after the Hyderabad top-order almost botched up the chase. Mishra's role will be key to the team's chances in Pune Wednesday evening.

Miss: Much like his Sri Lankan counterpart in Pune, Hyderabad skipper Sangakkara has seen form abandon him. Normally, a free-flowing aggressive left-handed batsman, Sanga has had a wretched time in the Indian T20 League so far. He is far better than scores of 15, 16, 23, 28 and 2 would suggest and the skipper would want to get a big knock under his belt sooner rather than later.

Quote:Our intensity was not up to the mark in the previous games but this win makes me very happy. There's a long way to go and we hope to continue the momentum: Ross Taylor, Pune's stand-in captain after the victory against Chennai.

Pune have to be far more consistent but after that special win against Chennai, their confidence would be sky high and they could be more than a handful for Hyderabad.