The 10th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has taken off at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday, as defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
Interestingly, two Australian cricketers – David Warner and Shane Watson – are set to lead the two sides, in what is slated to be this year’s first South Indian derby. SRH are set to come out with a strong bowling lineup, with the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ashish Nehra, while Shikhar Dhawan, David Warner, Kane Williamson, and Yuvraj Singh are set to take charge of the batting.
One the other hand, RCB find themselves in a bit of fix, as they travel to Hyderabad with a second string squad. Captain Virat Kohli has been ruled out of the match, after he injured his shoulder in the third Test against Australia. Their star Indian opener KL Rahul has been ruled out of the tournament, also with a shoulder injury. Star South Africa batsman AB de Villiers has also been ruled out of the first game.
Hence former Australia all-rounder Shane Watson is set to play the role of the stand-in captain for the match, which gets underway at 8pm. The match will be preceded by the Hyderabad leg of the opening ceremony, which will be graced by Bollywood actor Amy Jackson.
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