Finalists last year, both teams were eliminated early this time

Sreshth Shah24-May-20253:33

Should KKR change their captain next season?

Big picture: Both teams look to end with a winIt has been a while since Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), last season’s finalists, were eliminated from IPL 2025. Their mid-season woes were too much to make up for, even with KKR winning two of their last three completed games and SRH three of their last four.However, a win in their final match could give some respite – on the points table, at least – as they can finish sixth. That’s the motivation for both sides as they meet at a neutral venue, Delhi, looking to finish their campaign on a positive note.SRH have lost their last five games against KKR. But form is on their side. They dispatched Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by 42 runs, and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by six wickets, with ten balls to spare. KKR’s last completed game was 17 days ago, with their match against RCB rained out without a ball bowled, and they may need to shake off some rust as they look to extend their streak against SRH.Form guideKolkata Knight Riders: LWWLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sunrisers Hyderabad: WWLWLIn the spotlight: Eshan Malinga and KKR’s middle orderEshan Malinga was picked up for INR 1.2 crore by SRH after a bidding war with Rajasthan Royals (RR). He has stepped up late in the season with ten wickets in six games, having struck at least once in every match he has played. Considering Mohammed Shami’s high price tag of INR 10 crore, Malinga could be a tempting retention option for SRH moving into IPL 2026, with his electric fielding efforts having uplifted the team too.2:29

Kumble: SRH need to find an experienced spinner

KKR’s middle-order struggles have been well documented this season. KKR were meant to be among the most destructive of the ten teams this season, but ended up among the worst. Venkatesh Iyer and Ramandeep Singh have had forgettable seasons, while Andre Russell and Rinku Singh have blossomed too late. This led to KKR having the worst run rate (7.8) in overs 7-16 as well as the lowest average runs per wicket (20.8) of all teams. Sunday will be one last chance for them to show they’re still a winning combination come next season.Team news and likely XIIsRovman Powell and Moeen Ali are not available for KKR. Venkatesh could be back in place of Manish Pandey if he has recovered from his hand injury. Luvnith Sisodia, the explosive opener, could also get a debut in place of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, with one eye on IPL 2026.Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz/Luvnith Sisodia (wk), 2 Sunil Narine, 3 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 4 Angkrish Raghuvanshi, 5 Venkatesh Iyer/Manish Pandey, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Andre Russell, 8 Ramandeep Singh, 9 Harshit Rana, 10 Anrich Nortje, 11 Varun Chakravarthy, 12 Vaibhav Arora.Will Zeeshan Ansari find a place in SRH’s side?•BCCIDelhi has aided spinners, so Zeeshan Ansari and Rahul Chahar are potential options in the SRH XI. Otherwise, they could continue with their winning side from the game against RCB.Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 Travis Head, 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Ishan Kishan, 4 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 5 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 6 Aniket Verma, 7 Abhinav Manohar, 8 Harsh Dubey, 9 Pat Cummins (capt), 10 Harshal Patel, 11 Eshan Malinga, 12 Jaydev Unadkat.The big questionShami didn’t play IPL 2024 with an ankle injury. But he has always been great at making comebacks, and SRH were hoping for the same when they signed him for INR 10 crore at the auction. But with only six wickets in nine games, he was left on the sidelines. SRH will have to decide whether Shami, who will be 35 by the time the next IPL comes along, is part of their future plans. If he is, does he play against KKR?Pitch and conditionsThe average first-innings score at the Arun Jaitley Stadium this season has been 191, with results going 3-2 in favour of the chasing side. Scores of 200 have happened only three times in six matches, while spinners (31 wickets at 31.5, with an economy rate of 8.9) have outbowled the quicks (29 wickets at 43.9, with economy of 10.3). It should be a dry evening.Key stats Travis Head averages only 2 against Vaibhav Arora, having fallen early to him both times they have faced off. Ishan Kishan struggles against Vaibhav too, averaging 5 and striking at 77 with two dismissals in four innings. Jaydev Unadkat has traditionally kept Sunil Narine quiet: five innings, 19 runs, three dismissals, average of 6.3, and a strike rate of 86. KKR and SRH have had contrasting spin fortunes. KKR have the lowest economy rate (7.4) of all teams while SRH (10) have the highest. It has been a disappointing season, by their high standards, for Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma. Last year, Travishek averaged 49.4 as a partnership and had a strike rate of 224. This season, it’s 27.1 and 154, respectively. Abhishek (68), Heinrich Klaasen (54) and Narine (49) are three of the top six six-hitters in the IPL over the last two seasons. SRH have only a 31% win record against KKR, losing 20 of the 29 contests between the two sides.