Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad have taken contrasting routes to Wednesday's IPL Eliminator at the ACA-VDCA Stadium here. For the better part of a fortnight, Delhi looked on a course for a top-two finish in the league table. Even first place seemed a distinct possibility before a heavy defeat to Chennai Super Kings set Delhi back, the side eventually slipping down to third on net-run-rate. SRH, on the other hand, had given up control of its own destiny after losing its last two league games. No team had ever made it to the IPL playoffs with 12 points; it all depended on the result from Mumbai. As it turned out, KKR floundered at the Wankhede Stadium, and SRH advanced. Six points separate Delhi and SRH on the final league table, but that gap counts for nothing; they are now equals fighting to remain in the tournament. IPL 2019: Full coverage But Delhi should not be disappointed with this turn of events. This is a side that has reached the IPL playoffs after seven long years, one that finished rock bottom last season. A place in the playoffs should thus be seen as an achievement. In its overhauled avatar, Delhi has appeared a happy, reinvigorated outfit. On Saturday, Delhi's young captain Shreyas Iyer was asked about the difference between last season and this one. "Players have become more open; there is more freedom to express ourselves," he said. "There are no seniors or juniors in the team; everybody is treated equally. That's what has changed this season." The absence of Kagiso Rabada — who was in devastating form until he flew home with a back injury — is a blow but Delhi has a competent replacement in Trent Boult. The New Zealander allied with Ishant Sharma to break the back of the Rajasthan innings in the powerplay overs on Saturday. Taking them on will not be simple; nor will it be easy to put away Amit Mishra, who has only nine wickets this season, but remains a threat. Read: Mumbai outshines Chennai, enters IPL 2019 finals Delhi's batting has benefited from the consistency of the top four of Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant. Dhawan, for whom Delhi traded three players to SRH, has scored five half-centuries this season. That deal is increasingly looking like a bargain. In SRH, Delhi will be up against a side that is sorely missing its number one match-winner in David Warner. Williamson's return to form, after having scored 58 runs in his first seven matches, is good news; but there is simply no replacing Warner. Martin Guptill and Wriddhiman Saha, the current openers, have a huge responsibility against Delhi’s new-ball pair. Yusuf Pathan's form has been wretched (40 runs in 10 matches), and much now rests on Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar in the middle order. Also read: Delhi Capitals looking to create history SRH will also need to bowl better than it did in Bengaluru if it is to tie down Delhi’s top order. Rashid Khan had an off day, Shimron Hetmyer taking him apart, but the Afghan spinner has enjoyed his most economical IPL season yet. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Khaleel Ahmed cannot afford to be off target. As this green coastal city welcomes the IPL caravan, the scenario is simple for both teams: win and advance to the second qualifier; lose and head home.<doc-sep>Indian T20 League 2019, Eliminator: Delhi v Hyderabad – Dream 11 and Dotball Fantasy Match Tips and Match Updates Delhi was a better team in the league stages but it will be about nerves of the playoffs now. The eliminator will be played out at Visakhapatnam between Delhi and Hyderabad, both having won a game each against each other earlier in the season, on Wednesday. Delhi were extremely unlucky to not seal one of the top two spots and, on the other hand, Hyderabad were lucky to qualify for the playoffs despite losing 8 out of their 14 league games. The road to the finals is a long way ahead and both teams will have to play out of their skins to reach that far. The bulk of Delhi’s scoring has been done by Pant, Iyer and Dhawan and it will be wise to have them in your fantasy teams. Hyderabad’s Manish Pandey has been in blazing form and a must-have in a fantasy team. There would be plenty of runs on offer on this pitch but might also provide assistance to the spinners which makes Rashid Khan a hot property. At this stage, Delhi are far ahead from Hyderabad both on paper and on current form. The pressure of a knockout game will be telling. Head to Head: Last 5 games Hyderabad: 3 Delhi: 2 Likely XIs Hyderabad: Wicket-Keeper: Wriddhiman Saha Batsmen: Kane Williamson (C), Martin Guptill, Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan All-Rounders: Vijay Shankar, Mohammed Nabi Bowlers: Rashid Khan, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Basil Thampi Delhi: Wicket-Keeper: Rishabh Pant Batsmen: Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer(C), Colin Ingram All-Rounders: Sherfane Rutherford, Axar Patel Bowlers: Keemo Paul, Amit Mishra, Ishant Sharma, Trent Boult Dotball Prediction: Dotball team for Head to Head/Small Contests: Wicket-Keeper: Rishabh Pant Batsmen: Kane Williamson, Shikhar Dhawan (C), Martin Guptill, Shreyas Iyer All-Rounders: Vijay Shankar, Sherfane Rutherford Bowlers: Trent Boult, Khaleel Ahmed, Rashid Khan (VC), Amit Mishra Captain and Vice-Captain choices: Captain: After a disastrous start to the season, Dhawan found his range mid-season and his return to form coincided with Delhi’s winning run. In 14 games, the opener has managed to tally 486 runs at 37.38 besides collecting 5 fifties. With the Hyderabad pace attack lacking experience, Dhawan will look to feast on them and get his team off to a flying start. Vice-Captain: Rashid has been economical as ever barring a couple of games. He loves the big stage and will be keen to extract whatever he can from the conditions. His battle against Pant will surely keep everyone interested. Fantasy Tips Barring Dhoni’s assault a few days ago, Boult has kept it tight in this edition of the IPL and has lent experience to the bowling unit after the Kagiso Rabada jolt. He would know a thing or two about Hyderabad’s opener Martin Guptill. Play Dotball Fantasy for this T20 season and stand a chance to win big! Safe Captain Choices: Rashid Khan Amit Mishra Khaleel Ahmed Risky Captain Choices: Keemo Paul Vijay Shankar Axar Patel Dotball Team for Large/Grand Contests: Wicket-Keeper: Wriddhiman Saha Batsmen: Manish Pandey (C), Yusuf Pathan, Prithvi Shaw All-Rounders: Mohammed Nabi, Vijay Shankar, Axar Patel Bowlers: Keemo Paul, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma (VC), Trent Boult Captain and Vice-Captain choices: Captain: Having registered a solitary failure in his previous 5 innings, Manish Pandey is primed to make an impact in this crucial encounter. On his own, he has lifted Hyderabad’s middle-order from the doldrums and contributed in each of his outings after returning to the XI. He would be eyeing another big knock to pull his side through. Vice-Captain: Ishant’s returns this season are markedly different to his previous performances. He has been impressive and has bowled in the right channels, often bowling the majority of his quota of overs in the Powerplay. With Hyderabad missing Warner and Bairstow, Ishant will look to blow away the second string top-order. Fantasy Tips The stage is set for Prithvi Shaw to make an impact at the big stage. He has been struggling but has played well in patches. With Hyderabad’s pace attack leaking runs with the new ball, Shaw looks likely to take advantage. Dream 11 Prediction Suggested Playing XI No. 1 for Head to Head/Small Leagues Wicket-keeper – Rishabh Pant Batsmen – Shikhar Dhawan (C), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey (VC), Martin Guptill All-Rounders – Axar Patel, Mohammad Nabi Bowlers – Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Basil Thampi, Khaleel Ahmed Fantasy Tips Having dismissed Pant earlier in the season, Nabi will play a pivotal role against Delhi with his fast off-spinners. He can handle the bat down the order which is a bonus from a fantasy team point of view. Suggested Playing XI No.2 for Grand/ Mega Leagues: Wicket-keeper – Wriddhiman Saha Batsmen – Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Prithvi Shaw (VC), Kane Williamson (C) All-Rounders – Axar Patel, Mohammad Nabi, Vijay Shankar Bowlers – Ishant Sharma, Trent Boult, Rashid Khan Fantasy Tips Axar Patel has been accurate and has bowled with discipline this season. He is no mug with the bat and could provide valuable points for users. Make your Dream 11 team with our Fantasy Guide- IPL 2019, Eliminator – DC vs SRH: Dream11 Fantasy Cricket Tips – Playing XI, Pitch Report & Injury Update<doc-sep>The story of Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad this year has been very different. DC under the Shreyas Iyer-Ricky Ponting combination have been very consistent and different players have stepped in and performed in each game. They have been led brilliantly by Shreyas Iyer. The team management’s decision to back a core team of 11-13 players, and not chop and change the team around too much has paved way for success. Delhi Capitals have managed to reach the playoffs after a gap of seven years and can be extremely proud of their performance so far in IPL 2019. SRH on the other hand has mainly been about Jonny Bairstow and David Warner. The other batsmen barring Manish Pandey have been far too inconsistent and the bowling attack hasn’t been very threatening like previous seasons. They had a rather poor season for a team that made the finals last year by just winning six games in the league stage. The performances of KKR, KXIP and RR meant that SRH had a better NRR scraped through to the playoffs. Now that they have made it to the eliminator they should fancy themselves as they know how to win in such big games as compared to a Delhi franchise who has made this far after a gap of seven years. Keeping their performances in the league stage in mind and the conditions expected at Vizag, here’s looking at one player from each team who can make a difference to their team’s success: Shikhar Dhawan for Delhi Capitals The left-handed opener Shikhar Dhawan had a rather slow start to IPL 2019. But he’s come into his own in the last 5-6 games. He has set up the innings brilliantly when DC have batted first or chased totals. There were rather huge expectations from the experienced Shikhar Dhawan as he was roped in by the Delhi Capitals to provide the calmness and give the young, attacking batting line-up the experience they needed. And he has delivered on that expectation. His attacking presence at the top has helped the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant to have a pretty good season so far. He himself has accumulated 486 runs in 14 games with an impressive strike-rate of 137.28. He also has hit five fifties this season. Having been part of SRH in previous few seasons, Shikhar would certainly know what it takes to win in such high-pressure games. It’s this experience along with him being in good hitting form that can help Delhi Capitals defeat SRH tonight. Rashid Khan for Sunrisers Hyderabad Rashid Khan( Photo Credits: BCCI/ IPLT20.com) Someone who is used to running oppositions down, Rashid Khan has had a quiet IPL this year. Opposition teams have understood that it’s a better ploy playing out his quota rather than look to attack him. It’s a tactic that has worked well thus far. Among the big factors why SRH just won six games in the league stage has been the lack of penetration from their bowlers. Bhuvi has been good but hasn’t been able to get wickets when it’s required. The inclusion of Khaleel Ahmed hasn’t certainly helped them. But you can not keep someone as prolific and talented as Rashid Khan quiet for too long. He has played in high pressure contest like this before and would look to bring that confidence into tonight’s clash. He has bagged 15 wickets in IPL 2019 so far, but a match-winning performance from the talented Afghani could be round the corner. DC should not take him lightly and also, they should be weary of Rashid Khan’s strong arm from the boundary and his ability to clear the boundaries coming in the death overs. Follow Sportskeeda for all the updates on orange cap 2019, points table, schedule, news, live scores, purple cap and fantasy tips.<doc-sep>IPL 2019: Eliminator, Delhi Capitals vs Sunrisers Hyderabad – Statistical Highlights Here are all the major stats and numbers recorded during a thrilling Eliminator in Visakhapatnam. The Sunrisers Hyderabad’s luck didn’t last long as they were knocked out by Delhi Capitals in the Eliminator that went down the wire. Sunrisers got to 162/8 with contributions coming in from all their batsmen. The Delhi franchise got off to a flyer as Prithvi Shaw struck a 38-ball 56. The SRH bowlers brought their team back into the game with wickets in the middle overs. However, Rishabh Pant’s 21-ball 49 at the death overs buckled up SRH’s chances of moving further. Here are all the major stats and numbers recorded during a thrilling Eliminator in Visakhapatnam A first for Delhi 1 – The Delhi Capitals (or Delhi Daredevils) won a match in the playoff/knockout round of the IPL for the first time. They lost the semifinals during 2008 and 2009 editions and ended up losing in both qualifiers of the 2012 season. Obstructing the field 2 – Amit Mishra became only the 2nd player to be dismissed obstructing the field in the IPL. The first player was Yusuf Pathan during the 2013 season game against PWI while playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders. Shaw levels with Gill 4 – Number of half-centuries for Prithvi Shaw in the IPL, the joint-most by any player in this league before turning 20. Shaw’s U-19 mate, Shubman Gill also has four IPL fifties as a teenager. Gill scored as many as three fifties between Shaw’s 3rd and 4th fifty in the IPL to move ahead. The toughest season for Sunrisers 9 – Number of matches the Sunrisers Hyderabad lost in this IPL season. This is the most number of defeats for SRH in an IPL edition. Their previous most number of losses in an IPL season was eight in 2014 where they won six matches. Thampi’s misery 9.7 – Basil Thampi’s bowling economy rate of 9.7 in the IPL is the worst among the bowlers who have bowled a minimum of 300 balls. Thampi picked up 16 wickets across the 19 IPL matches he played thus far at an average of 40.5. Yet another duck for Rashid 3 – Number of ducks for Rashid Khan in this IPL. The most by a Sunrisers player in an IPL edition. Five players bagged two ducks apiece for SRH in an IPL season including Rashid in 2018. Dhawan @ 500+ 503 – Runs Shikhar Dhawan has scored in this season. The 3rd most by any player in an IPL season for the Delhi Capitals/Daredevils. Rishabh Pant scored as many as 684 runs in the 2018 IPL while Gautam Gambhir aggregated 534 runs in 2008. [interaction id=”5cd2bb96e66725e58af5134d”]<doc-sep>
IPL 2019: Eliminator, Delhi Capitals vs Sunrisers Hyderabad – Statistical Preview All the key stats and numbers ahead of the Elimination Final between SRH and Delhi. The Sunrisers Hyderabad should be considering themselves lucky having made it to the playoffs with only 12 points; the lowest qualification points for a team in the history of IPL. They will now be up against the Delhi Capitals which will be first of the two hurdles to pass on the route to the final. The Delhi franchise was dominant for the most part of the tournament but the big defeat against Chennai Super Kings towards the end allowed the defending champions to gain an edge on NRR and finish at the second place. All the key stats and numbers ahead of the Elimination Final between SRH and Delhi: 0 – Number of playoff/knockout matches that the Delhi Capitals (then Delhi Daredevils) have won in the IPL. They lost the semi-finals in 2008 and 2009 editions and ended up losing in both qualifiers in the 2012 season. 3 – Sunrisers Hyderabad won each of their last three IPL matches in Vizag; all while defending a total. SRH played a total of five matches at this venue won three, lost two. 38 – Rashid Khan has bagged 38 wickets across 27 Twenty20s he played in 2019; the most for any bowler in 2019. Shreyas Gopal, Wahab Riaz and another current SRH player Khaleel Ahmed have claimed 33 wickets apiece and share the 2nd spot. 42.75 – Manish Pandey has a batting average of 42.75 in the IPL against the Delhi Capitals/Daredevils. In the 12 IPL innings against Delhi, Manish has scored 342 runs including two half-centuries. 47.88 – Bowling average of Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the IPL against the Delhi franchise. The SRH pacer picked up only 9 wickets across the 14 IPL matches against them. DC bowler Amit Mishra also averages over 40 with the ball against Sunrisers. In the nine IPL games against his former franchise, Mishra claimed only 5 wickets at an average of 41. 50.83 – Shikhar Dhawan’s batting average in the Twenty20 format at the VDCA Stadium in Vizag. The left-hander scored 305 runs across 8 innings with help of two fifties. 154.14 – Rishabh Pant’s strike rate against the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL. Pant scored 279 runs across 8 innings against SRH at an average of 46.5 and also scored his only IPL ton. His skipper Shreyas Iyer also has a decent record against Sunrisers having scored 278 runs in the same number of innings at an average of 39.71 with help of two half-centuries. 926 – Shreyas Iyer has scored 926 runs in the Twenty20 format in 2019; the 2nd most by any player this year behind Shane Watson’s 953 runs. Iyer scored those across 24 innings at an average of 44.09 with four fifties and two hundreds.