IPL 2026: Here's why SRH can dominate CSK in Chennai
What's the story
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) face a must-win situation against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 63rd match of the 2026 Indian Premier League. The game will be played at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium on May 18. Five-time champions CSK have won six and lost six of their 12 matches so far this season. Meanwhile, SRH have a better record with seven wins out of their 12 games. Here we look at why SRH are expected to dominate the upcoming affair.
CSK
Bowling can be issue for CSK
CSK suffered a heavy defeat against the Lucknow Super Giants in their last match. They were majorly let down by their bowlers in that game. As SRH boast a destructive batting line-up, the CSK bowlers can struggle once again, as we have seen some high-scoring games in Chennai this season. Contribution from lower-order batters has also been one of CSK's issues this year.
SRH
SRH boast a well-balanced unit
SRH boast a formidable batting line-up with Heinrich Klaasen and Abhishek Sharma being their star performers in this department. Their bowling has also vastly improved since the return of their regular skipper, Pat Cummins. They have been particularly brilliant in the death overs in a few games. Owing to the same, SRH look better on paper in comparison to CSK.
H2H
A look at head-to-head record
As per ESPNcricinfo, CSK and SRH have met 23 times in IPL, with the former winning 15 of those encounters. The Orange Army, however, won when these two sides met earlier this season. At home, CSK have a good record against the 2016 IPL champions, winning five out of six games.
Line-ups
Here are the probable XIIs
CSK (Probable XII): Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, Prashant Veer, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Spencer Johnson, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh. SRH (Probable XII): Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Smaran Ravichandran, Pat Cummins (c), Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Praful Hinge.