GL vs SRH Preview & Prediction IPL 2016 2nd Qualifier

If Sunrisers Hyderabad Bat First

Predicted score: 170

David Warner is only second to Virat Kohli in the list of leading run-scorers in this IPL. If it's his day on Friday, Sunrisers should be able to post a big total. Henriques, Yuvraj and Hooda all made fine contributions in the last match against KKR after the openers fell early. So this should take some pressure off of Dhawan as well. If Warner plays a big innings and Yuvraj carries on from where he left off, SRH shouldn't face much problems getting to 170.

Dhawal Kulkarni was the star for Gujarat Lions in the first qualifier as he took 4 wickets for just 14 runs in his quota of four overs against a mighty RCB batting lineup. Opening the bowling with him will be Praveen Kumar who has also been quite impressive. Spinners Jakati and Jadeja haven't been that much consistent and they will be targeted by the SRH batsmen. Dwayne Bravo has been difficult to score off in the final overs. So if Gujarat remove Warner within the powerplay, it could get tough for Hyderabad to reach 170.

Our Prediction

With the likes of Finch, McCullum, Raina and Smith in their side, Gujarat Lions boast a powerful batting lineup. If they make first use of the batting conditions, they can put the Sunrisers under pressure by putting up a challenging total. But the fact that they were comprehensively beaten by Hyderabad in both their league-stage games won't do their confidence any good. Moreover, it will take more time for them to adapt to the conditions in contrast to SRH who have just played their last match at the Kotla on Wednesday.

Though Gujarat Lions are simply too strong a team to be written off, the odds seem to be in favor of Sunrisers Hyderabad and so we're predicting them to win this second qualifier on Friday.